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lokifiction · 6 years

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Relationship Status

It’s really no secret that the Avengers and Loki aren’t fans of each other, but when a seemingly invincible common enemy looms ahead, it is necessary that they learn to get along. However, it soon becomes quite clear that this will be no simple task.

Category: Fanfic

Rating: Teen

Notes: Reminder that Camryn and Pepper are not cousins. The fact that they share a last name is just a coincidence. Hope you all enjoy!

Warnings: Brief mentions of sexual content, but nothing explicit.

Tags: @chezagnes

Please let me know if you’d like to be tagged in this fanfic so I can add you to the list!

First Chapter

Previous Chapter

Chapter Eighteen: At the Ballet

“Mrow.”

Unsure if I had dreamed the sound or not, I rolled away from the sunlight streaming in through the opened curtains of the bedroom. Loki usually pulled them in the mornings to read by the natural light.

“Mrow.”

The paws that begin to knead my sides assured me that I wasn’t dreaming, and I curled even further into my nest of pillows and mimicked the cat’s sound.

“Mrrrrrow!”

When Henry’s fluffy belly covered my nose, I relented and rolled onto my back, scooping the giant cat into my arms and holding him to my chest.

“You’re such a baby,” I cooed, scratching under his chin. He began to purr, butting his russet-colored head into my hand. “Why don’t you bother Daddy?”

I glanced over and discovered that Loki wasn’t next to me, his side of the bed completely neat, as if he had never slept there in the first place.

“I guess Daddy’s not here, is he, Henry?” I swung my legs off the bed and stood up with the cat still in my arms. “Why don’t we go find him, hm? Let’s go find Daddy.”

Henry mewled in agreement, becoming dead weight in my arms and kneading his claws into my skin as a sign of his satisfaction. Tutting at his self-indulgent behavior and hoisting his bulk higher in my grasp, I began to venture around the penthouse to find Loki, following a hunch I had about his whereabouts.

Sure enough, when I cracked open the door to the pool room and peeked inside, I discovered Loki moving about the space as if hypnotized, occasionally ducking under and staying down for an inhuman length of time, the dark walls and bottom of the pool making his pale skin seem like a sliver of moonlight on the water. That ritual was one he did often: to de-stress, to clear his mind, to solve a problem, or even to connect with certain aspects of his seidr.

I admired his indescribably graceful movements and the rippling of the lean muscles in his back for a few moments, watching his onyx hair fan out behind him almost like a demon’s halo, wondering how a being so ethereal could even be real. When Henry started to mewl again, though, I tiptoed away from the door and slid it closed, not wanting to disturb Loki during the almost religious time for him.

“Let’s not bother Daddy now, hm?” I murmured into the fur at Henry’s neck. “Let’s go find your sister and get you your breakfast. How does that sound?”

I made my way down the staircase and into the kitchen, happily clucking at Henry the whole way until I noticed a figure sitting in one of my bar stools, my affectionate noises being cut off as I jumped and let out my signature shrill scream. The figure turned to me in surprise, and when I discovered that it was only a rather perplexed Clint, I leaned against the wall and pressed my hand to my chest, willing my pounding heart to calm down.

“Sorry, I just...” I bent down to briefly comfort Henry, who had angrily leapt out of my arms. When I stood back up, however, Loki was at my shoulder, a green glow fading from around his form, fully clothed but with dripping hair, a dagger in both hands.

“What’s happened?” He demanded, eyes boring into mine with burning intensity, not paying any mind to Clint. “Are you hurt?”

“No, Lo, I’m fine.” I rested my hand on his chest, feeling his accelerated heartbeat, catching my breath from my second startle of the morning. “I just-“

“Apparently I’ve committed a horrible crime by helping myself to some coffee,” Clint interrupted, raising the mug he was drinking from. Loki’s intense gaze snapped to him, and a muscle in his jaw twitched. I tugged at the fabric of his shirt, trying calm him, but even though his demeanor softened at my silent request, he still pulled me as close to his side as possible. I noticed Clint raising his eyebrows at the scene, and returned my attention to our guest.

“No, you’re totally fine. I just slept so deeply that I forgot you guys were here,” I explained. “We’re not used to having company, so it scared me to round the corner and see a person in my kitchen.”

Clint’s nose wrinkled ever so slightly. “You’re easily startled, I see.”

Loki’s grip on my hip tightened, and I felt his ribs expand along my back as he drew in a sharp breath. My quickness to scream at the top of my lungs when someone came up behind me unannounced was a quality he frequently teased me about, but the moment someone else mentioned it, he was ready for murder. I put my hand on top of his to stay him, giggling awkwardly.

“Yeah, I always have been.”

Clint took a sip of the steaming coffee and grimaced slightly. “I’ve got to say, this is a little strong for even me, and my blood is 90% coffee.”

“Oh, that’s Loki’s.” I waved my hand dismissively. “I don’t really drink coffee.”

Clint slammed the mug back on the bar, splattering a bit of liquid onto the eggshell-colored surface, and stared at me with wide eyes. “How can you not like coffee?”

“I know.” Loki’s grip on my hip loosened as he leaned against the counter, shaking his head slightly. He was always ready to be diplomatic when advocating for his specially ordered extra-strong coffee. “I’ve tried to convince her many times of how wonderful it is.”

“And I’ve tried to tell you that I like the taste, but the caffeine gives me a bad reaction.” I nudged Loki’s arm. “I always drink the decaf on the rare occasion that you get it. You’re just partial to the heavily caffeinated kind because it’s the only kind that will give you a buzz and you like the buzz.”

“Exactly.” Loki shrugged. “That’s part of the experience.”

“It definitely is,” Clint agreed, he and Loki sharing a glance of camaraderie completely contradictory to the murderous expressions they had been exchanging not moments before. Leave it to opinions on coffee to bring two people together.

“And is another part of that experience taking care of me when I have panic attacks from it?” I retorted, sticking my tongue out and approaching the cabinet to fetch the cat bowls. “I’m just fine over here with my tea.”

“Oh, Thor has your other cat, by the way,” Clint informed when he noticed me looking around for Bellatrix. “He said he was taking her on...a walk, or something?”

“Yeah, he does that whenever he’s over.” I giggled as I began to scoop out Henry’s food. “There’s a little walking trail and community garden behind this building. Bellatrix likes Thor so much that she just follows behind him, and Thor thinks it’s funny to watch her sniff the dogs and pretend she’s one of them.”

“What’s the matter?” A female voice interrupted the conversation, and Pepper entered the room with Tony in tow, both still in their sleeping clothes. “We heard screaming.”

“I just forgot that we had guests, and rounding the corner and finding someone in my kitchen startled me,” I replied, bending down to put Henry’s food bowl in front of him. He gave me an “it’s about time” look and began to eat with all the fervor of a starving person. I rolled my eyes at the sight before returning my attention to my guests.

“Sorry if her scream woke you, but I had to have some of this coffee.” Clint nodded to his mug. “I could smell the beans the moment I opened the cabinet and couldn’t resist trying some.”

“Is it really good enough to warrant frightening our oh-so gracious host?” Tony picked up the mug and took a whiff. “Well, it certainly smells like it.”

“I’ll make a pot.” Loki shuffled past me to reach his beloved siphon coffee maker. “After drinking Thor’s mead last night, I assume that everyone will want some.”

“Loki, while you’re over there, can you look and see if we have what I need to make pancakes?” I requested. “I think I might make a brunch for everybody.”

“Oh, Camryn, you don’t have to go through the trouble to do that,” Pepper insisted, settling down next to Clint on one of the bar stools. “We’ve imposed on you enough.”

“I want to. I am still the hostess.” I began to arrange ingredients that Loki handed me. “Besides, I don’t want to brag, but I make pretty good chocolate chip pancakes.”

“Oh, yeah, I remember that time when Loki stayed overnight at the med ward in the tower. You made him a waffle that looked and smelled absolutely delicious,” Stark commented. “Do you specialize in breakfast food or something?”

I opened my mouth to answer, but Loki was already replying for me, beaming with pride.

“Camryn is an excellent cook, but her sweets are the best.” He winked at me. “She’s good at breakfast food because she likes it so much.”

“You like it so much, too.” I stuck my tongue out at him, then addressed our guests again. “I’ve always said that I don’t trust anyone that doesn’t like breakfast food.”

“Well, I don’t think there’s anyone like that here.” Clint glanced around at his company. “I’m always up for some pancakes.”

“So am I,” Tony chimed in.

“Well, you’re all in for a treat.” Loki held up the pot of freshly-brewed coffee. “Who wants some?”

I beamed at the sight of him being a model host, knowing that just twenty-four hours ago he would’ve rather died than fill their cups, and six months before he would’ve tried to kill them if they dared to even set foot in our house. There were definitely still kinks to be worked out between Loki and the Avengers, and there always would be, but the progress they had both made was outstanding.

“Okay. I smell coffee and I need some desperately.”

We all turned to find out who the yawning voice belonged to, and discovered Bruce rubbing his eyes, sleep clothes disheveled and slightly greying hair a complete mess. He stopped in his tracks when he noticed the gazes trained on him, looking at us all with a disgusted expression.

“How are you all so...alive?” He groaned, running his hand down his five ‘o’ clock shadow.

“I had coffee, Pepper didn’t drink last night, and Tony’s used to drinking.” Clint passed a mug that Loki had filled over to Bruce. “Down the hatch. You’ll feel better.”

Bruce took a gulp and grimaced. “What, is this Asgardian coffee to go with the Asgardian liquor?”

“I’m making pancakes that should take the edge off of it.” I motioned to the last empty bar stool. “Sit and make yourself comfortable. There’s cream in the fridge if you need any.”

“No, don’t get me wrong, this is the best coffee I’ve ever had.” Bruce stared into his cup. “Maybe this time caffeine will actually work and wake me up.”

“I heard the word ‘caffeine’ and came running.” Natasha’s voice preceded her cheery entrance into the kitchen. She said a quick good morning to everyone before stepping behind me to pour herself a mug of coffee, leaning against the counter and motioning to my mixing bowl. “Pancakes?”

“Yup.” I added the chocolate chips to the batter. “I’m doing a brunch for everybody.”

“Anything I can do to help?”

“Um...” I glanced around the counter, looking for what needed to be done. “It would be a big help if someone could cut up the fruit, now that you mention it. And Loki, I just thought of this, but could you do that whipped cream you always make?”

Soon I had everyone working on one task or another, chatting merrily about the events of the previous night as they went until Thor returned to the penthouse with Bellatrix in his arms. Bella meowed happily as she bounded over to me and Loki, and Thor observed the scene with an amused smirk.

“I see that my brother and his fiancée have enlisted some worker bees,” he commented, crossing his arms over his broad chest.

“I’m not forcing them to do anything,” I insisted, flipping some pancakes. “I decided to make brunch, and they wanted to help. Except for Bruce, who’s suffering the hangover of a lifetime.”

“Ah, Banner!” Thor slapped Bruce’s shoulder. “I told you that you have to pace yourself with that mead.”

“Yeah, I’ll remember that for next time. That is, if I can handle a next time.” Banner smiled weakly, raising his third mug of coffee. “Cheers.”

“Are you sure you’re okay, Bruce?” I asked, pouring fresh batter onto the pan. “We can arrange a ride home for you.”

“No, it’s alright.” He waved me off. “Those pancakes smell really good, so I definitely don’t want to leave without having some.”

“I don’t, either. Do you have some sort of task for me, as well?” Thor came to peek over my shoulder, causing Loki to take a step closer to me, folding me into his side. Making a sound between adoration and exasperation, I pointed to one of our cabinets.

“You can give Bellatrix her breakfast,” I suggested. “She was gone when Henry ate.”

“A task I gladly accept.” Thor scooped Bellatrix up from the kitchen counter and knelt in front of the cabinet, reaching for the cat food. I giggled at Bella’s excited mewls for a moment before turning back to my pancakes, the flow of the room returning to its original state until Tony glanced up from the oranges he was peeling and scanned the area.

“Hey, has anyone seen Capsicle?” he inquired. Most of the room’s occupants shook their heads, noting the absence.

“We passed each other when I took Bellatrix out for a walk. He said he was going for a run,” Thor replied, brow furrowing. “Though he should be back now.”

As if on cue, my phone started to vibrate, Steve’s contact flashing on the caller ID.

“Found him,” I announced, answering the call and putting it on speaker, everyone crowding around to hear. “Hey, Steve, where are you?”

“Your doorman won’t let me in,” he grumbled, voice barely audible. Bruce and Clint exchanged a look.

“What did he say?” Clint whispered.

I cleared my throat. “Pardon?”

“I’ve been out here for the past fifteen minutes arguing with your doorman because he won’t let me on the elevator to get back to your place,” Steve repeated, louder that time.

“Okay, well, which doorman is it?” I asked, trying to ignore Tony, Loki, and Thor sniggering behind me.

“His nametag says Roger,” Steve replied.

“Ah, that’s why,” I sighed. “Alan was the doorman last night, and I told him about the company I was having and left your names with him. Roger, though, is a stickler for the rules, and your names weren’t left with him, so there’s not a chance he’d let you up, whether you stayed the night or not.”

“Well, how am I supposed to get back?” Steve demanded, his tone seeped in panicked annoyance.

“I’m in the middle of making brunch, so I’ll send Loki down after you.” I hung up the call and glanced over at Loki, who had gone back to work on his whipped cream. “Okay, Lo?”

Loki rolled his eyes and switched off the hand mixer he had just picked up. “I suppose. Don’t let Thor eat any of my cream.”

“Come now, brother. What’s the issue?” Thor stepped away from the small crowd that still surrounded me and my phone. “You have a peculiar talent for making whipped cream. Why should I not enjoy the fruits of that talent?”

“Because the last time you ‘enjoyed’ the fruits of my talent, there was no cream left to go on top of the pie it was meant for.” Loki tied his still-damp hair into a loose knot at the nape of his neck, making my heart skip a beat. “You can have some whipped cream on your pancakes after everyone else has gotten their portion of it first.”

“Oh, Loki, is that really necessary?” Thor protested.

“Guys!” I held up my ringing phone. “We don’t have time for this. We’ve got an annoyed super soldier downstairs.”

“I’m going, I’m going,” Loki assured. “Protect my whipped cream with your life.”

“Lo, do you really want your bride-to-be to die on account of a sugary dessert topping?” I teased.

“Good point.” Loki’s expression remained comedically stoic as he nodded towards the Avengers sitting at our bar. “Protect it with their lives.”

“You got it.” I flashed him a thumbs-up as he left the kitchen, relishing my guests’ slightly frightened expressions as I answered my phone. “Yeah, Steve, he’s on his way.”

Once Loki returned with a red-faced Steve, I finished the last batch of the pancakes as Loki and Pepper set the table, and the entire group crowded around our breakfast nook, smashed elbow to elbow. I happened to be sandwiched between Loki and Thor, and never before had I, a statistically tall woman, felt so small. There was a buzz of excited murmurs as everyone filled their plates, followed by a silence filled only by the scraping of utensils against dishes.

“You weren’t lying, Camryn,” Stark eventually spoke up, mouth still full. “These pancakes are amazing. And Loki, I have to say, I wouldn’t have pegged you as a chef, but I would gladly give my life for this whipped cream.”

“Yeah, you have to be careful with feeding us like this.” Natasha smirked, running a strawberry through the bowl of cream. “We might never leave.”

“Believe me.” Loki grinned wolfishly, gripping my thigh under the table. “Discomfort at things you were overhearing would make you want to leave come nightfall.”

“Disgusting, brother.” Thor cringed. “You’ve done that to me before. I’ll never get the sounds out of my head.”

A collection of groans and disgusted tuts filled the room, Loki shrugging and lamenting that Thor shouldn’t have overstayed his welcome, which prompted a good-natured spat about the ambiguity of the welcome that was extended in the first place. Pepper eventually cleared her throat, putting her fork down and folding her napkin onto her lap.

“Why don’t we change the subject to breakfast-appropriate conversation?” she suggested, picking up her glass of orange juice. “Camryn, thank you so much for putting up with us, especially when you have to work later. Just tell us when you need to leave and we’ll scoot.”

“Oh, it’s totally fine,” I assured. “It’s dress rehearsal tonight, so I don’t have to be at the theatre until four.”

“Dress rehearsal?” Bruce echoed. “We’re the Avengers, and somehow she makes her job sound a lot cooler than ours. I mean, she’s a ballerina.”

“It’s just Paquita,” I assured. “As far as repertoire, it’s not the coolest. It’s fun, though.”

“I’m sorry- Pa-what-a?” Stark squinted at me.

“Paquita,” I corrected, giggling. “It’s an old ballet. Russian choreographed in a Spanish style. A lot of elegance and showmanship.”

“Sounds cool enough to me.” Clint shrugged. “I might even like to see it.”

“If it was you dancing, anything would be worth seeing,” Pepper praised. “I’ve only seen you in person at that gala, but even there you were something special. I knew I had to see more, so that night I watched a bunch of YouTube videos of your performances. I couldn’t get enough.”

“Camryn onstage is truly something amazing to behold.” Loki’s posture expanded with pride. “It makes me wonder if she’s really human.”

“Loki, stop. I’m not that good.” I ducked my head, but Bruce was already talking over me.

“Oh, now I kind of want to see!” he exclaimed, and everyone murmured in agreement.

“Well, Paquita isn’t exactly a blockbuster. The audience of this one will probably just be patrons and ballet students. I’m sure there will be empty seats.” I pursed my lips, shrugging. “If you guys were serious about wanting to come, I could probably pull some strings and get you tickets.”

“Could you really do that?” Steve’s eyes went wide.

“Yeah, it’s no problem,” I assured. “I’ve pulled strings in the box office dozens of times. That is, if you guys want to come?”

“I already had tickets for a performance, but I’m not opposed to seeing it twice,” Natasha replied. “How about everyone else?”

Everyone murmured their agreement, and I blushed and asked Loki to hand me my phone.

“Does this mean I have to chaperone them the whole night?” he groaned in my ear as he did so, and I shushed him as I started to dial the box office manager.

“Don’t lie to yourself, Lo. You’ll enjoy it, trust me.” I stuck my tongue out him as I put my phone to my ear, sitting up straighter when the call was picked up, pressing the speaker button and setting it on the table. “Hi, Shannon, it’s Camryn.”

“Hello, Miss Camryn,” Shannon, the box office manager, greeted in her gravelly voice. “I reckon you called because you need tickets.”

“Yes, Shannon, I do.”

“Well, how many? Just one?” Shuffling papers could be heard over the line. “It says here that you already got your fiancé’s ticket.”

“Yeah, I’ve got some other guests that want to come,” I replied. “I actually need seven tickets, if it’s not too much trouble.”

“Seven?” Shannon screeched. “Camryn, I didn’t think you talked to anyone outside of the theatre. Who the hell are these seven people?”

The group sitting around the table started at Shannon’s high pitched tones, and I giggled awkwardly.

“Well, um... the Avengers.”

“What?” The shriek was louder this time. Bruce groaned and rubbed his temples, and Tony put his fingers in his ears. “How in God’s name do you know the Avengers?”

“You know Pepper Potts, right?” I fibbed, seeing as Shannon was part of the majority of my acquaintances enchanted to believe that my Loki was not the same one that tried to take over New York. “She’s my cousin.”

Pepper blinked in surprise at the mention of her name, and Clint raised his eyebrows at Loki, nodding in my direction.

“She told that lie without a moment’s hesitation,” he noted. “Was that something you taught her?”

“I’m proud to say that it wasn’t.” Loki straightened haughtily, lowering his chin. “That’s a talent all of her own.”

“That’s not comforting,” Stark commented, and I put my hand over the speaker and shushed them, waiting for Shannon’s spiel about how she couldn’t believe she hadn’t put two and two together to end.

“Yeah, Potts and Potts,” I played along. “I know that it’s late notice and I’m asking for a lot on opening night, but are the tickets possible?”

“For the Avengers, absolutely. You can come pick them up tonight,” Shannon assured. “I hope I get to meet them. I’d like to thank them for all they do.”

Loki rolled his eyes, Natasha clucked appreciatively, and Steve mused that Shannon was “such a nice lady”. I shushed again, motioning to my phone.

“No, thank you for all that you do, Shannon. I’ll see you tonight.” I hung up the phone and noticed the expectant expressions of my guests. “So, are you guys ready for the ballet?”

***

“And try to be nice,” I reminded from the bedroom, packing the remaining things I needed for opening night into my bag. “I’m not going to be there to mediate any fights.”

“Love, I’ve spent plenty of time alone with them before now,” Loki called from the bathroom. I went to lean against the doorframe, watching as he released his wet hair from a towel and reached into a cabinet, dress shirt clinging to his still-damp skin. “One could even say we’re on good terms now.”

“I know that, but I also know that things can change in an instant. They already have before,” I fretted, biting my lip.

“They won’t this time. You have absolutely no reason to worry.” He stepped over and ran his hands down my arms, giving me a long and tender kiss before resuming his position in front of the mirror, plugging in and turning on his mind-bogglingly high-tech blow dryer. My mood changed in an instant when I saw the sight, and I scrambled to get a photo of it that I had long coveted. He smashed his palm in front of my phone camera when he noticed it pointed at him, hiding the hair dryer behind his back.

“Camryn, if you post a photo of me drying my hair, I won’t let you orgasm for a month,” he declared, spraying a prepping serum onto his loosely curly locks.

“That’s a bit harsh, and seems like unnecessary tension to build up before the wedding,” I pouted. “If you’re so ashamed of your hair care routine, why don’t you just fix it by magic?”

“Because it looks better when I do it manually, and the process is surprisingly soothing,” he explained defensively, pointing the dryer at his hair. I giggled, running up and kissing him on the cheek.

“You’re so cute,” I cooed, stepping out of the bathroom and grabbing my bag. “I’ll see you in a bit. Love you.”

“Love you, too,” Loki called back. “Be careful on the Metro.”

“I always am,” I assured, dashing out of the bedroom. I knelt to bid the cats goodbye at the door before stepping onto the elevator, riding it to the expensively furnished lobby of the building, pushing through the revolving doors into the gradually warming spring air and making my way to the Metro stop only a block away.

After a brief ride, I arrived at the theatre, greeting the security guard warmly as he let me in through the stage door. Once immersed in the seemingly never-ending hallways of the world the audience didn’t get to see, I noticed an unusual backstage chaos as I made my way to my dressing room, with reception staff, stage crew, and dancers all running amok. I paused in front of my door to observe the scene for a few moments, trying to discern what was going on. No one was saying anything, however, so I dismissed it as opening night chaos and pushed into my little haven from it all. Once I had changed into dancewear and grabbed the proper shoes, I joined the chaotic herd and made for the stage to get a spot for warmup class, positioning myself at a barre near the front with Chantel and Stellan.

“What’s with all the craziness?” I wondered, bending over the metal rod to crack my back. “Everyone is going nuts. I know for a fact that they’re not all freaked out over Paquita.”

“You didn’t hear?” Chantel’s head snapped up from where she was doctoring a blister on her toe, doe eyes widening. “Apparently the Avengers are coming tonight. Everyone’s panicking over trying to make everything perfect for them.”

“Oh, oops.” With a cringe, I lowered myself to the floor and started to roll out my calves with a tennis ball. “That’s sort of my fault.”

Chantel gasped, then coughed a few times. “God, Camryn. You made me swallow my gum!”

“Sorry.” I offered her my water bottle, but she declined, pulling her legs underneath herself and leaning in close to me, eyebrows soaring into her hairline.

“You’re saying that you invited them? How do you even know them?”

“Pepper Potts is my cousin,” I replied easily, having been prepared for such a question. Stellan, who knew the truth about Loki, cocked an eyebrow.

“I wouldn’t put it past you to have a secret like that. You’ve always been so mysterious.” Chantel nudged my shoulder. “Why haven’t you ever told me?”

“It’s never come up.” I shrugged, fighting a grin at what I was about to say. “And while we’re talking about this, it might be a good time to tell you that they’re going to be at my wedding, too.”

“Shut up!” Chantel screeched, briefly drawing the attention of everyone on the stage. “How have you never told me that before?”

“I didn’t want to seem like I was bragging,” I improvised. “Loki and I wanted to keep the whole thing...well, low-key.”

“Nothing is low-key with you two except for your fiancé’s name.” Chantel pointed a pair of rolled-up legwarmers at me as she stood. “I’m going to go fill up my water bottle, but be prepared to do some hardcore explaining when I get back.”

As Chantel left, Stellan inched closer to me, leaning on the barre and resting his chin in his hand.

“So, I assume the rest of the dinner party turned adult sleepover went well?” He asked. “No one murdered anyone? Everyone still has all of their appendages?”

“No, it all went good,” I chuckled. “I think Loki and I are finally in the clear as far as the Avengers go.”

“That’s good. You two don’t need that extra stress.” Stellan patted my shoulder. “You’ve got enough to worry about, like, ya know, running a kingdom and stuff.”

“It will still be a few years before we get to that point,” I replied in a low voice, not wanting my colleagues to overhear anything about Asgard, despite the fact that enchantment placed on them would make them completely oblivious to it, regardless. My stomach lurched as I saw Chantel return to the stage, my mind scrambling to come up with inconspicuous answers to whatever she would ask me, but I was relieved to discover the ballet master walking up behind her, sauntering to the front of the stage to start class and save me from such a conversation.

After warmup class, a ballet class given onstage to prepare dancers for the upcoming show before the doors were opened to the audience, everyone dispersed much quicker than usual, forgoing their usual routines of sticking around and putting in last-minute practice on problem steps so that they could dash up to their dressing rooms and prepare for another event.

Since Paquita wasn’t exactly a blockbuster ballet, in order to draw in an audience as big as one for Swan Lake would be the company was hosting a pre-show reception and meet-and-greet - one that the dancers were required to attend, and one that Loki and the Avengers would be at. It was quite an annoying ordeal- having to get hot and sweaty in class; then having to make ourselves look presentable for a formal event; walk around and socialize when all we want to be doing is getting mentally centered for our performances, sipping virgin drinks and soda instead of alcoholic beverages; then yank our feet out of heels and into pointe shoes, turn our makeup into stage makeup, get re-warmed up, and go onstage after all of the nonsense. However, given my current situation, I didn’t mind going. Even though Loki and the Avengers were completely in the clear, habit dictated that I wanted to supervise them as much as I could when they were together.

I was the first dancer ready for the reception, but I didn’t wait for anyone to go down with me, and practically ran to the door that led from the backstage staircase to the lobby. When I pushed through it, I immediately spotted Loki in his sleek black suit, but my path to him was intercepted by Mrs. Travers, a batty yet lovable old woman that lived in our building with her husband, Reginald. She was a vastly wealthy member of the ballet board, and was infamous for crediting her influence as the cause for my success as a dancer.

“Oh, and here’s the lady of the night!” She tittered, scurrying up to me and pulling my head down so that she could kiss my cheeks, drowning me in the scent of her ancient Chanel perfume. “Camryn, you had best dance very well tonight so that you don’t get upstaged by those guests that you and your fiancé brought.”

I giggled nervously, glancing over her shoulder and scanning the lobby, the tension in my chest releasing when I spotted Loki, a passive smile on his face. “I assume you mean the Avengers?”

“Yes! They’re all anyone can talk about.” Mrs. Travers linked her arm through mine, tugging me further into the space. “Who would’ve known that Pepper Potts was your cousin?”

“That seems to be the question of the night,” I murmured, watching the pleasant scene from afar. The Avengers stood in a clump surrounded by a swarm of wealthy people “classily” fighting for their attention, which they handled with well-practiced ease. Loki stood slightly off to the side, his true association with the Avengers shrouded by his magic, letting the scene play out with an almost satisfied expression, occasionally sharing a word or two with Thor as he sipped a glass of wine. I dipped down to address Mrs. Travers, my mood considerably lifted.

“I see that Reginald is quite deep in conversation with Mr. Rogers.”

“Oh, yes.” Mrs. Travers clicked her tongue, pursing her wrinkled lips and shaking her head firmly. “I wanted to wait and be formally introduced to them by you, but Reggie just walked up to the poor man and started bombarding him with topics like the war and Germany. He’s probably vexing Mr. Rogers to tears. I’ve never been so embarrassed.”

I fought to hide my amusement, swallowing my laughter as I detangled myself from her vice-like grasp.

“I’m sure that Steve doesn’t mind, but why don’t you go try to pull him away while I catch up with my fiancé?”

“I’ll do just that.” Mrs. Travers toyed with the jewels at her neck, pulling herself up to all of her grand height of five-foot-one. “I wanted to speak to Stellan before the show, anyway. I’ll see you in a bit, dear.”

Once I was free of Mrs. Travers, I sidled up to Loki, ducking under his arm that was resting on a table, kissing his cheek.

“Hello, love,” I greeted as he jumped in shock, murderous expression softening to one of amusement when he realized that it was only me. “Is everything going well?”

“It is,” he replied, drawing me closer, sliding his free hand into his jacket pocket. “The Avengers, unsurprisingly, conduct themselves very well in social situations.”

“Ah, here she is!” Stark announced when he spotted me, opening up the small clump of people he was entertaining and motioning for me to come closer to the center. “The woman of the hour!”

“I’m not so sure about that,” I teased, taking a virgin Shirley Temple from a passing waiter, observing Tony’s conversational partners and recognizing them all as patrons of the ballet. Normally, their attention would be entirely trained on the dancers, but at that moment, they stared at the Avengers as if no one else in the universe existed. “The way I hear it, you all are stealing my spotlight.”

“Hardly,” Steve assured, and behind him I noticed Mrs. Travers pulling Reginald away, thin lips scrunched in annoyed determination. “Everyone we’ve spoken to has told us what a treat it is to see you dance. They’re all saying that they’re glad it’s you we get to see for our first visit to the ballet.”

“Oh, so no pressure, right?” I joked, taking a sip from my glass.

“Absolutely not,” Loki insisted, flashing Steve an annoyed glance that was gone as quickly as it came. “You’re always wonderful, no matter what.”

“Thanks, Lo.” I patted his arm. “You know that I’m used to pressure. But I do hope I’m up to the task of impressing you all.”

“Well, Thor, Stark, Pepper, and I have already been impressed by your dancing,” Natasha reminded, pointing at each of them in turn. “All you have left to impress are Clint, Bruce, and Steve, and they’re easy targets.”

“Hey!” Clint protested, crossing his arms. “I am not!”

Natasha cocked an eyebrow, putting her hands on her hips. “Yesterday on the way back from a mission, you delayed us ten minutes so you could watch a pigeon eating a churro.”

Clint threw his hands up in exasperation, and the socialites on either side of him exchanged confused murmurs. “Come on, though, you have to agree that that one was funny.”

As Natasha and Clint bickered over whether or not the churro-eating pigeon was worth stopping for, the argument having a brief intermission so Natasha could fix a death glare on a man ogling her in her black dress, shifting the fabric of the skirt just so he could see the outline of the holster strapped to her thigh until he scurried away, Pepper flashed me her usual apologetic look and pushed through the miniature crowd to approach me.

“Thank you for working this out for us.” She glanced back at Tony, who had moved on to talk to another cluster of patrons. “The team needed this- a fun night out without all of the world-saving responsibilities. And to get to know our new partners better.” She winked and squeezed my hand.

“Honestly, it’s the least I could do,” I assured, looking up at Loki, who was furrowing his brow at a story Thor was telling, no doubt internally correcting every fib. “You have no idea the stress you’ve taken off of Loki’s and my shoulders by accepting us with open arms.”

“Well, it was a process to get there,” Pepper admitted, “but we’re there. The dog days are over, and now we can move forward as a team.”

***

Spurred on by the audience’s applause and the relief of a finished performance, Stellan and I glided offstage at the end of the ballet, squishing our sweaty, heavily-breathing selves into a corner to avoid the stampede of corps dancers exciting after us, only for the majority of them to immediately reassemble back onstage for the bows. I grabbed my water bottle from the stool reserved for me as one of the night’s principal dancers and Stellan pulled a wad of tissues from the box on the stage manager’s desk, passing a few to me.

“That was good, right?” he panted, dabbing his forehead.

“I can never tell with the ballets that aren’t overly emotional, but I can’t complain,” I replied, shaking the cramps out of my feet and biting my lip, which was dry from sucking air through a smile. “The real assessment will be made when I see the reactions of my guests.”

“They don’t know anything about ballet. I’m sure they’ll tell you that you were amazing, because you always are.” Stellan grabbed me around the waist for a one-armed hug, crushing my tutu against his side.

“You’re still sweaty,” I giggled, pushing him away and putting my hands on my hips, resting them on the stiff tulle. “And Natasha Romanoff trained at the Bolshoi, you know.”

“Bolshoi, smolshoi. Everyone knows that Vaganova is the real top school in Russia.” Stellan stuck his tongue out at me, tossing his tissues aside and offering me his hand. “Now, come on. We’re about to miss our bow.”

I cracked a grin and allowed him to lead me onstage, the two of us greeted by a fresh surge of applause. We took our bows at the front of the stage, tears filling my eyes as they always did at that moment, then backed up to collect and lead the rest of the cast in the final reverance of the night.

“Look down there,” Stellan whispered to me as we all linked hands, and I followed his line of sight to just behind the orchestra, where Loki and our guests were placed. Loki, Thor, and Natasha were already on their feet, Loki catching my eye and winking as he applauded. Pepper and Tony joined them soon after, Bruce nudging a snoozing Clint awake as he rose. I fought the urge to roll my eyes at the scene, turning to accept the enormous bouquet of flowers offered to me by a girl from the school attached to the company, her face beet red. Giving the bouquet to the night’s principal ballerina was such a highly coveted job amongst the students, yet such a feared one. I hugged her and kissed her cheek, murmuring my thanks before turning back to the audience for one last bow.

“Here we go again,” I breathed to Stellan once the curtain dropped, handing my bouquet off to the stage manager as a stagehand opened the curtain for me and Stellan to make our curtain call. The group at the front whooped and hollered for me louder than anyone, and Stellan squeezed my hand before letting go of it so that I could take one last curtsy to my knee, locking eyes with Loki as I did so, with so much pride and admiration communicated in such a simple exchange.

“Well, it seems they liked it to me,” Stellan commented once we were back behind the curtains. “The Avengers could’ve brought the house down by themselves.”

“One of them fell asleep,” I fretted, thanking the stage manager that passed me my bouquet and making my way for the backstage door as the crew began their end-of-performance maintenance.

“Ryn, this is Paquita,” Stellan reminded, boarding the elevator with me and pushing the button for our floor. “Anyone who doesn’t know or appreciate beautiful ballet technique is going to fall asleep. You were amazing. I would know- I was right behind you the whole time.”

“Not the whole time,” I teased, pulling one of the roses from my bouquet and holding it out to him. “But you were amazing too, Stellan. Your variation was phenomenal.”

“We’re a partnership made in heaven,” he sang as the elevator opened, comically sniffing his rose as he descended the hall where his dressing room was located. “Move over, Kirkland and Baryshnikov.”

“First off, Misha Baryshnikov was horrible to Gelsey Kirkland,” I called after him, adopting a playfully stern tone. “And secondly, don’t let Loki hear you say that. You may not live to see the sunrise, even if he knows that you’re only into guys.”

“I’ll take my chances. Now go hurry so you can see him,” Stellan ordered before rounding the corner. I giggled and headed the opposite direction, opening my door and startling as I discovered one of the wardrobe ladies waiting in my dressing room.

“Hi, honey,” she greeted, beaming and rising from the sofa for a hug. “Haven’t seen you very much lately.”

“Yeah, you haven’t really dressed me since my corps days when I shared a room with a bunch of other girls,” I replied, setting my flowers on my table so that I could properly hug back. “Once I was promoted and got my own, Loki sort of took over from there.”

“I know. Not to anyone’s dismay, though.” She smirked, taking in the photos of him taped all around my mirror. “He is very attractive.”

“Yeah, I’m still not sure how I got him,” I admitted, picking up the frame that held one of our engagement photos. “He’s...more amazing than words can describe.”

“And so are you, honey,” she assured. “But I figured I’d come help out since he’s out front tonight. Come here.” She motioned for me to approach her and turn around, and she started to unhook the clasps of my tutu. “I hear that you’re the one responsible for our high-profile guests.”

“I am. And I feel so bad!” I exclaimed, chewing on a nail. “I feel like I caused a lot of people trouble, but they really wanted to come.”

“You caused the trouble of bringing in money.” The dresser patted my now-bare back. “I think you’ll find that those in finance will want you to bring them to every show to draw in other paying audience members.”

“Oh, I hope not!” I gasped, turning back around and holding my unclasped tutu to my chest. “They’re a lot of work.”

“I would imagine so.” The dresser chuckled along, shuffling over to the door. “I’ll let you get changed. See ya later, sweetie.”

Once I was alone, I slipped into the dress I had worn earlier in the night, jammed my swollen and aching feet into a pair of heels, grabbed my bouquet, and hurried to the lobby. Loki was waiting by the door when I pushed through it, and I immediately swung my arms around his neck, pulling him into a hug.

“You were spellbinding, darling,” he declared, kissing me softly. “As usual.”

“Only because you were there.” I replied, rubbing my nose against his and squeezing his waist before pulling away, glancing over his shoulder. “But where’s everyone else?”

“They’re waiting by the main doors.” Loki pointed in that direction, taking me by the hips and leading me towards where he indicated. “They won’t shut up about you. I will admit, I was getting a bit jealous.”

“Loki, come on.” I squeezed his arm as we came up behind the Avengers, all clustered together and chattering animatedly. “You know I would never leave you. Especially for one of them.”

“One of them what?” When Tony heard us approach, he turned around and looked me up and down. “By ‘them,’ do you mean your adoring fans? Because I think that’s what we all are now.”

“Oh, stop.” I ducked my head, shuffling my feet. “Surely that’s an exaggeration.”

The group broke out in insistences that it really wasn’t, but Clint’s overly emphatic reaction in particular caught my eye.

“Come on, Clint,” I scolded. “Stop pretending. I saw that you fell asleep.”

“Sorry.” He shrugged nonchalantly, dropping his act instantly. “Consider it official payback for your fiancé mind controlling me.”

Surprisingly enough, the comment didn’t immediately fill me to the brim with a burning urge to defend Loki at all costs, and Loki’s reaction was limited to a sharp breath and clenching his jaw. I merely kept my hand firmly clasped in his and pursed my lips, nodding and holding my free hand out.

“Consider it done; all water under the bridge now. Truce?”

Clint clasped his hand in mine and shook it firmly, a hint of a smile lighting up his face. “Truce.”

“Now that we have that over with, we should give it to her.” Tony nudged Thor.

“Give me what?” I queried, craning my neck to see over the group. Thor came out from behind Bruce bearing an elegant bouquet of irises, extending it to me.

“Everyone wanted to get you their own bouquet, but I told them that you would be getting an enormous bouquet from the company and that it would be overkill if we did that, so we decided to just do one,” Natasha explained. “Thor was the one that picked out the arrangement-”

“-Which he has a strangely good eye for,” Tony interrupted.

“-but we knew that we wanted it to be irises,” Natasha finished. “Because irises symbolize-”

“-friendship,” Loki cut in, sparkling eyes betraying his stoic expression. “As well as faith and respect.”

“Exactly,” Steve replied, locking eyes with Loki and sharing a heavy glance. “And we mean it.”

“For once in my life, I’m…” Loki chuckled, his gaze drifting to the floor. Thor came up and clapped him on the back, holding his shoulder with a loving firmness. “I’m at a loss for words.”

“How about that this is something to celebrate? We all look nice.” Natasha pointed to the door. “Why don’t we all go out for some drinks?”

“I like that idea,” Tony piped up. “What about you, Camryn?”

“That sounds great. There’s actually a bar within walking distance that the dancers always go to after shows. Say my name and you get a discount.” I adopted a strict tone, and pointed to Loki, Thor, and Tony in turn. “Just no drinking contests. Remember how badly it turned out last time. A drinking contest was what caused the whole mess that we just fixed.”

“Don’t worry, Camryn. It’ll be casual drinking tonight. Two drinks, tops.” Tony pulled me to his side in a one-armed hug, my fingers still intertwined with Loki’s. “But even if we did go for more, the accidental truth slip would definitely not be so negative this time.”

“I’m glad to hear that.” I patted Tony’s shoulder and detangled myself from his arm, motioning for everyone to follow me. “Let’s go, then.”

The group filed in behind me as I emerged through the doors, the constant buzzing energy of New York City seeming to radiate entirely from us and the serendipity that flowed through each of us in a closed circuit. I positioned the bouquet of irises on top of the one the company gave me, using my free arm to pull Loki close, pausing to take in his content expression, one I almost never got to see, before resting my head on his shoulder.

“Look at how far we’ve come, Loki,” I murmured, my gaze travelling up to the tops of the skyscrapers that surrounded us, wondering how something could be so far above us when our moods were so high.

“I know,” Loki lamented, his eyes adopting a far-off expression. “I’m actually excited for the future now. It’s a future I’ve always secretly wanted, and it’s a future that wouldn’t have been possible without you.”

“It’s the least I could do, though I didn’t do much.” I pulled out one of the irses and twisted it into his lapel. “You gave me the future I’ve always dreamed of, and I’m going to spend every second of it trying to make yours as happy as mine is.”

“You do that by simply being by my side.” Loki leaned in for one more kiss, but Stark whistled for our attention.

“Hey, lovebirds!” he called from behind us. “You’re supposed to be leading us to the bar, not your bedroom.”

“It’s right here, Stark. Don’t get your panties in a twist.” I rolled my eyes, positioning myself in front of the entrance and dramatically throwing my arms out to the side. “Come on, friends. Let’s go paint the town.”

#loki fanfic #loki fanfiction #loki laufeyson #loki x reader #loki x oc

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lokifiction · 6 years

Text

Taglist!

Hello, everyone! Due to my life being much crazier than usual, username changes, and a few mistakes, I’ve lost track of the original taglist for my fanfics. I think taglists are an important feature for fanfic authors, so I’m going to start a new one!

Please let me know if you’d like to be tagged in any of the following:

Caught in the Crossfire

Relationship Status

Run to Me, Runaway

Unsinkable

Oneshots

(Fanfic Masterlist

Oneshot Masterlist)

You can be tagged in as many as you’d like; I just want to make a more official record so that this one doesn’t get lost. Thanks so much for your patience, and I hope you guys add your name to the taglist!

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lokifiction · 6 years

Note

I love your characterization of Loki. Idk how to describe it, but he just feels right. I also wanted to say that your writing is superb and I’m glad I found this blog. That’s all! I hope you have a lovely day 😊

Oh my god, you have no idea what that means to me! An out-of-character Loki is something that’s heavily criticized in the fandom, yet Loki’s so complicated that hard to write in character. I slave over reading metas and character analyses, edit my chapters three and four times before posting, and go back and change earlier chapters to make sure he’s as in character as can be. It means everything to me to have someone recognize my efforts like that. I can’t thank you enough; you’ve made my entire week!

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lokifiction · 6 years

Text

Taglist!

Please let me know if you’d like to be tagged in any of the following:

Caught in the Crossfire

Relationship Status

Run to Me, Runaway

Unsinkable

Oneshots

(Fanfic Masterlist

Oneshot Masterlist)

47 notes · View notes

lokifiction · 6 years

Text

Run to Me, Runaway Fact: Sleeping

Because of their pasts, both Loki and Camryn are uneasy about sleep and feel unsafe when doing so.

That is, until they found each other.

Once they shared a bed once or twice, they’re utterly unable to sleep properly without each other.

If one of them is out late or doing something in another room, the other waits up for them because they won’t be able to rest until they’re together.

While they’re asleep, they’re always touching in some way, even if they’re just holding hands or tangling their legs together.

Spooning is a favorite.

Loki has to be the big spoon, because he feels the need to “protect” Camryn.

Loki insists on his side of the bed being the one nearest the door to their bedroom so that any intruders would see him first and not Camryn.

Though spooning is a favorite, their most frequent sleeping is on their sides, face-to-face, bodies pressed so close together that no one could discern who was whom, Camryn burying her face in Loki’s chest and Loki resting his chin atop her head.

That’s how they feel the safest, and the bonus is that they can drink in as much of each other as possible.

#remember how i said i was gonna post these daily and i didnt?#hahahahahahahahhahaa classic me #anyway here’s another one

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lokifiction · 6 years

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Flavors

Loki, in an attempt to learn about and adjust to life on Midgard, tries ice cream for the first time.

Cateory: Oneshot

Rating: General

Notes: This is an idea that I’ve been soft over for a long time, and since summer’s drawing to a close, I figured I’d better get this up while it’s still in season. I hope you enjoy, and I’ll see you all back here after this with a new chapter of Relationship Status!

Warnings: None at all.

Masterlist

Loki was adjusting to life on Midgard splendidly.

In dealing with the destruction of the world he had called his home for almost a thousand years, he saw the positive in that we could be together all the time, seeing as we would now reside on the same planet. However, work prevented me from picking up and moving to Norway, and Loki and I had warned Thor that the Norwegians wouldn’t let people claiming to be an alien race just waltz in and set up a kingdom on their land, whether their ancestors worshipped them or not. And sure enough, when the ship landed on Earth, the refugee Asgardians were plunged into a slew of negotiations with the government regarding them being allowed to stay. When S.H.I.E.L.D arrived, Loki, who still wasn’t a favorite of theirs, decided that his presence probably wouldn’t help the situation, and removed himself to come live with me until the chaos died down.

He was savvy enough to blend in perfectly, and if I didn’t know better, I would never suspect that he was an alien that had never resided on Earth for longer than a few weeks at a time. He had a period where he mourned silently for the world he had considered his home, not leaving my apartment at all, but as time passed, he was eager to get out more, and see what sort of lifestyle I led in my little corner of Earth. When he first mentioned his feelings about that to me one hot Friday afternoon, when I was hot and sweaty from work and the walk home, I eagerly suggested we go try out my favorite ice cream shop, and he readily agreed.

I walked into the shop with my mouth already watering- it had been so long since I’d treated myself. With Loki’s fingers intertwined in mine, I pulled him along to look at the flavors, biting my lip at the thought of just choosing one.

“Hmm.” I smacked my lips. “I think I’m going to get the caramel peanut butter cup this time.”

There was silence on Loki’s end, enough to prompt me to cast a glance in his direction and notice him staring at the menu with a furrowed brow.

“You okay?” I eventually asked, nudging his shoulder with mine.

“Darling, what on Earth is a ‘Twix’?” he eventually responded.

It made complete sense to me that he would have no idea what any of the candies or even some of the flavors were, seeing as the time he had clocked on Earth wasn’t spent perusing grocery stores and sampling chocolate bars. Whenever we had gone out in the past, it was usually to high-end restaurants, which reduced his exposure to Midgardian commoner food to almost none.

“Um… I don’t really know how to describe a Twix bar…” I trailed off. “It’s chocolate, and crunchy.”

“But how does it taste?”

“Well, I think they’re delicious.”

“But I’m a picky eater, love.” Loki kissed my forehead to take the edge of off his comment. “I need more than that.”

“I’m sorry. It’s just that I’ve grown up with things like that. To me, a Twix tastes like a Twix.”

“Okay, then.” He studied the menu once more, and I was suddenly grateful that the shop was experiencing its after-dinner Friday rush. I didn’t mind giving Loki the time he needed to figure out what he wanted, but I hated the slightly annoyed stares I got from employees when taking the time to make such decisions.

“Is it any easier to describe a Three Musketeers?” he asked, shaking his head. “Norns, that’s a colorful name.”

“Yes, that one’s easier! It’s simpler than a Twix. It’s really smooth milk chocolate covering nougat.” I paused when I noticed Loki’s furrowed brow. “Do you not know what nougat is?”

“No, I don’t believe I do.”

“Well, it’s squishy and a bit chewy...tastes sweet, but I suppose everything in here tastes sweet.”

By the time I finished my poor explanation, Loki’s eyes were already trained back on the menu. “And butterscotch? Rocky road? Why in the Nine would you want to eat something that tastes like a rocky road?”

“It doesn’t actually taste like a rocky road, doofus.” I rolled my eyes, pushing him lightly.

“Well, then, what does it taste like?” he practically sang, with an all too familiar tight-lipped smile mischievous glint in his eyes.

“You’re just asking all of these questions to make fun of me!” I shrieked. “I’m not kidding when I say I can’t describe these things! It’s like how you can’t really explain traditional Asgardian treats to me because you’ve grown up with them!”

“Alright, perhaps you’ve caught me.” Loki licked his lips and looked at me like I was the most delicious thing in the shop, pulling me flush against my body so he could murmur his next words in my ear. “But one thing that I know without a doubt is that you have very good taste. I trust you to pick something for me.”

“Lo, only you would find a way to use picking out an ice cream flavor as a vehicle for seduction. And it’s working.” I gave him a swift kiss to assure him of that before turning my attention back to the task at hand. “What sort of flavors do you like in your desserts? Sweet, salty, bitter?”

“Contrary to popular belief, I actually have quite a bit of a sweet tooth,” Loki replied, mimicking my suddenly serious demeanor.

“I knew that much. You eat primarily fruit when you’re at my place, and when we’re on Asgard, you go through an entire dish of dates a morning. And I’ll never forget the time I attended the harvest feast and you, quite elegantly, I might add, completely destroyed an impressive amount of apple-lemon cakes.”

Loki’s eye twitched a bit at that comment. While my memory from that feast was finding out something new and quirky about Loki that I loved, his memory was from the blazingly judgmental looks he got from the servants and attendants as they noticed the large amount of cake crumbs on his plate in comparison to the enormous, red, dripping hunk of beef that he barely touched.

“I’m not making fun, I promise. I did eat just as many cakes as you did that night. I’m just used to you eating like a bird because you’re so picky. Which is why this decision is a bit stressful for me, because ice cream is one of my favorite things and I want you to love it, too. Everything in here is going to be sweet, so what kind of sweet do you or don’t you like?”

“Overly bitter things aren’t my favorite, though I don’t mind it in moderation,” he compliantly informed. “The only thing I absolutely can’t stand sweet-wise are things that are so senselessly sweet that they don’t taste like anything tangible as food.”

“Okay, bubble gum is definitely out, then. Not that I pegged you as a bubble gum sort of person in the first place.” I reviewed the flavors once more. “What sort of sweet do you like best? Fruity sweet? Chocolate? You like chocolate.”

“I do.” Loki ran his fingers down his chin. “I think that’s what I want. Something chocolate.”

“Okay, something chocolate. That’s definitely doable,” I assured. “Are you in the mood for something light or heavy? Crunchy? Smooth?”

“Love, I told you that I trust you to pick something out for me.” Loki chuckled lightly and held me by the shoulders. “Teach me about Midgardian culture through ice cream.”

“Okay. I have just the thing that represents every category mentioned and I think you might really like.” I tapped Loki’s nose and approached the counter at last. “I’ll have a caramel peanut butter cup sundae, and he’ll have the mint Oreo sundae.”

“Do I dare ask what an Oreo is?” Loki murmured in my ear as the worker filled our orders. “Will I get another very colorful yet unhelpful description?”

“Oh, Oreos are easy! They’re crunchy chocolate cookies with thick cream in the middle.”

“And what’s a cookie?”

“I’m not going to attempt to describe a cookie. You’ll see in just a few moments.”

Once the worker finished constructing Loki’s sundae- three scoops of mint cookies and cream ice cream (a specialty of the shop) topped with chocolate drizzle, Oreo crumbles, and three whole mint Oreos atop each scoop of ice cream- and handed it to me, and I turned to pass it to Loki.

“Here. This order had Loki written all over it.”

Once we took our ice creams to a small table in the corner, Loki pointed at the Oreos on top of his sundae. “So these are cookies?”

“One kind of them, yes. There’s a lot of different kinds of cookies, actually.”

“Are you serious?” Loki stared at the Oreo. “For such a young planet, Midgard has developed quite the eclectic culinary culture.”

“Well, those are humans for you. Especially American humans.” I nudged his forearm. “Go on, try it.”

“Alright, alright.” He brought it to his nose. “It smells delicious, but so unnatural.”

“Just try it already, Mr. Picky.”

“Fine.” He bit into the Oreo and chewed thoughtfully. “Well, now I understand why there are so many different kinds of cookies. This is certainly a pleasant surprise.”

“Good, right?” I handed him his spoon. “Now try the whole thing.”

He scrutinized the utensil in his hand. “This spoon is inadequately sized for the task at hand.”

“Tell me about it.” I took a bite of my own ice cream. “Just try it! You liked the Oreo, so I think you’ll definitely like the whole thing.”

“I’m just trying to savor this whole experience. You’re the one that would call the whole thing sentimental.”

“Usually, yes, but it’s starting to melt! You don’t get the full effect if it’s melted.”

“As you wish, my darling.” Loki piled his spoon with a bite of ice cream and all of the toppings, but I stopped him before he could put it in his mouth.

“I thought you wanted me to hurry up!” he protested.

“I know, but that comment about sentiment made me remember.” I pointed my cell phone camera at his face. “Now remember how much you love me and smile.”

I quickly snapped my desired photo of him with his ice cream and Loki finally popped the bite into his mouth, eyes growing wide.

“Oh my gods,” he exclaimed, uncharacteristically speaking with his mouth full and already taking another bite before swallowing the first. “This is one of the most delicious things I’ve ever tasted. No wonder you humans are so easily controlled by food.”

“I told you!” I watched bemusedly as Loki went after his cup of ice cream with a fervor I’d never seen from him before. “Do you want a bite of mine? It’s a bit different from yours- peanut butter, chocolate, and caramel.”

Loki remembered himself and put his spoon down, dabbing his mouth with a napkin. “What’s caramel?”

“It’s this brown stuff on top. Here.” I ran my spoon through the syrup and handed it over to him. He tried it and smacked his lips, handing the spoon back to me.

“That is also delicious,” he assessed. “I would like a bite of yours.”

I fixed him a “perfect” bite and held it up to his mouth, giggling as he ate it from my hand, wondering the reactions that would occur if the world could see the God of Mischief being fed by a mortal. As he tasted the ice cream, his eyes fluttered closed and he sighed.

“That is also divine.”

“I told you so.” I took a bite for myself. “Ice cream is one of the best ever human inventions.”

“I agree wholeheartedly. “ Loki returned to his own ice cream, so absorbed in it that he didn’t say a word, making for our most silent outing together to date. When every last bit of his ice cream was gone, he rose from his chair, still without speaking, and drifted back towards the register.

“What are you doing?” I called after him.

“I really liked what you had, as well,” he replied. “I want an order of it myself.”

I sat back and watched him place his second order in amused awe, thinking that introducing Loki to ice cream was one of the best things I’d ever done.

***

The next morning, I sat in bed alone, scrolling through Instagram. Loki rose early, as usual, and announced to me that he wanted to go pick something up for breakfast. It was something he’d done a time or two on Saturday mornings to pass the time while I slept, and I figured he’d return with crepes or Eggs Benedict or something along those lines. I browsed Instagram to pass the time, reading the comments from the photo I’d posted of Loki with his ice cream, laughing out loud at some particularly witty and colorful ones from Thor and Tony Stark. I admired the photo for myself until I heard the front door open, and I rose from the bed to greet Loki.

“Thanks for doing this, love.” I rose up on my toes and kissed his cheek. “What did you get?”

“Ice cream,” he announced with all of the excitement of a child on Christmas morning, pulling the travel cups out of the bag he carried.

“...Ice cream?” I echoed.

“Yes. I simply couldn’t wait to try a new flavor.” He breezed past me and into the kitchen, retrieving a pair of spoons.

“Were there even any ice cream shops open at this time of the morning?” I asked, looking at the cups to find out where they came from.

“It was certainly difficult to find one, but it was worth it. Ice cream is quite possibly the most delicious thing I’ve ever tasted, and I could eat it for every meal.”

“Hm, the most delicious thing you’ve ever tasted?” I contorted my lips into a pout and threw my arms around his neck. “I thought that was me.”

He chuckled and pulled me in for a kiss, murmuring his next words against my lips. “Then I suppose I’ll have to taste you again, and make a proper assessment.”

#loki laufeyson #loki oneshot #loki fanfic #marvel #marvel oneshot #loki x reader #loki x oc #loki x ofc

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lokifiction · 6 years

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About the Admin

I got tagged to do an about me meme, so I figured it would be a good way for you guys to get to know me, the person behind lokifiction! I hope you enjoy!

Nicknames: Elle

Height: 5’8

Sexual orientation: Pansexual

Nationality: American

Favorite fruit: I love all fruit!!

Favorite season: Summer, but I love autumn, too.

Favorite flower: Roses and lavender

Favorite scent: Roses, lavender, sandalwood, petrichor, autumn-themed candles

Favorite color: Jewel-toned greens, dark reds, and purples.

Favorite animal: Anything that falls under the category of “feline,” but especially cheetahs.

Coffee, tea, or hot chocolate: Tea

Average hours of sleep: 7-8

Cat person or dog person: Cat person, but I still love dogs so much.

Favorite fictional character: Loki (obviously), Daenerys Targaryen, and an insane amount of anime characters. Like, we’d be here all day if I wrote them all down. This isn’t an anime blog, so I’ll use restraint and just tell you that it’s a lot.

Number of blankets you sleep with: Four, even in summer. It’s a security thing.

Dream trip: I would love to see the entire world and that is one of my major life goals, but priority destinations are an extended tour of Europe, Japan, and Disney World (lol).

Blog created: Three years ago this month! I was too busy to post about it on the actual anniversary...

Number of followers: 4292

Random fact: I’m in training to be a professional ballerina! In August I take a big step forward into the trainee stage (basically the internship of ballet) of my training and start working with a professional company!

I never tag specific people in these things, so feel free to do it if you want to and say I tagged you!

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lokifiction · 6 years

Photo

Okay, everybody, so @bookworm555 is an actual angel and drew Camryn! This is the first bit of fanart I’ve ever received for my fics, and I’m completely blown away. Thank you so much, Becca, you are honestly the best! She looks perfect! You’re so talented! (And, yeah, her hair is kind of her defining feature, lol.)

I recently discovered @lokifiction, and have become addicted to their fics! (If you’re looking for some good Loki/OC fics, this blog is for you).

I really like their OC Camryn, so I decided to do a quick colored sketch of her. (Hopefully, she looks all right; this is the first time I’ve drawn hair this long, haha.)

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lokifiction · 6 years

Note

So, I just discovered your blog a few days ago, and have been eagerly making my way through your fics. (Finished the most current chapter of Run to me, Runaway, and am now reading Unsinkable). I've been looking for good Loki/OC fics for ages, so I'm glad I found yours! Camryn is such a great OC. (I definitely want to draw her at some point; she has a cool design!)

Wow! I’m going to be 100% honest- when I first read this, I had to take a few moments to scream to myself because I was so happy! OC fics aren’t very popular and are often labeled as “cringey” nowadays, so I’ve always been insecure about being an OC fanfic blog. Hearing you say something like that means the absolute world to me and keeps me motivated to work on this blog! I’m so thrilled that you like the fanfics and think that Camryn is a good OC. I cannot express to you how happy it makes me that you like her enough to want to draw her, and if you did, I just might explode.

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lokifiction · 6 years

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Run to Me, Runaway

Category: Fanfic

Rating: Mature

Notes: This chapter is hella whumpy, so this one is dedicated to all of the whumpers in the Loki fandom! (Tbh,this whole fanfic is a big ball of whump, but..........we’ll get to that later.)

Warnings: Mentions of blood and depictions of sickness

Masterlist

First Chapter

Previous Chapter

Chapter Eighteen

Loki watched in horror as Camryn’s body seemed to fold in on itself and she crumbled to the ground, his heart stopping as her head hit the gold with a sickening crack. Not sparing a single thought to the behavior befitting the king he was just crowned as, he pushed gawking feast attendees aside, rushing over to cradle her limp figure in his arms. He called out to her, but her eyes remained closed, her face paling to a dangerous shade, so white she seemed to be almost blue.

“Send healers to my chambers,” Loki barked at the nearest guard, standing up with Camryn still in his grasp. The guard dashed away and Loki fled the dining hall without so much as a glance towards the guests that called queries at him, only preoccupied with the way Camryn shook violently in his arms, childlike moans escaping her lips.

“I’ve got you, darling,” he whispered, struggling to keep his voice calm as he entered his apartments and pushed into the bedroom. “I’m here. Don’t worry.”

He wasn’t sure if his last comment was directed at her or himself.

After gingerly laying her on the bed, Loki pressed his palm to her forehead, finding her skin hot to the point of burning. He pulled his hand away and fussed about trying to make her as comfortable as possible, wondering what brought on a fever so severe so suddenly. He desperately wanted to do something to help her state, but there was nothing he could do until the healers arrived and determined what exactly was ailing her. Even so, he was completely unable to keep still, so he began to remove her gown, replacing it with a lightweight nightdress, her eyes fluttering open as he fastened the buttons up the front.

“Loki?” she whimpered, her voice cracking.

“Yes, love?” Attempting to remain calm, he pulled the blankets up to her chin and placed a hand on her burning cheek. He studied her features to try and figure out for himself what was wrong, noticing her now coal-black eyes ridden with a confused and muddled fog, her perpetually pouting lips dry and cracked, crying out for water.

“Wh-what happened?” she mumbled, tone barely over a whisper, eyes drifting closed and open then closed again.

“Well, during the feast, you fainted of a high fever.” Loki stroked Camryn’s hair, hoping to provide her some comfort. “The healers are on their way. Hopefully they’ll be able to determine the cause and restore your health.”

Suddenly alert, Camryn’s eyes widened as she sat bolt upright, only to fall back onto the pillows, her arms too weak to support herself. “During your coronation feast?” she gasped.”What about the ball that was supposed to follow, and the festival that’s going to be thrown over the rest of the week?”

“They can be postponed.” Loki took her clammy hand in his, pressing a quick kiss to her fingers. “Your health takes priority over everything.”

She nodded dismissively, putting her hand to her mouth and beginning to cough, the action sending tremors up and down her body. When she pulled her arm away, the sleeve of her nightgown was dotted with red, sending chills down Loki’s spine. She whimpered and turned wide eyes to Loki, features contorted in alarm. Thankfully at that moment, there was a knock on the door that preceded the entrance of two middle-aged healers, along with their head, Eir.

“My king.” she dipped into a slight curtsy before approaching the bed. “How is she faring? I’ve heard so much gossip in only the past five minutes.”

“Not well,” Loki all but whispered, fearing that if he said it aloud, it would make the danger of Camryn’s condition true. However, he had been close to Eir since he was a child. She had treated all of his ailments, from minor cuts and scrapes from fights with Thor, to life-threatening, heat-induced illnesses that he had no idea the origin of at the time. Oftentimes, when Frigga was away or busy when he was a child, Loki would spend his time in the healing room, hovering behind Eir’s skirts, asking questions about everything she was doing and begging to be taught the healing spells she knew.

“I’ll see what I can do.” Eir’s piercing blue eyes scanned Camryn’s form, her expression a well-practiced mask of warm indifference.

“Wait, I remember you. From when I thought Loki was dead-” Camryn attempted to sit up once more, but again fell back onto the bed and placed a shaking hand over her eyes. Loki adjusted her pillows so that she might be in a more comfortable position.

“Call me Eir, my dear.” She motioned to her two assistants, then positioned herself at the edge of the bed, conjuring a holographic orange cradle with countless moving monitors, beginning her examination.

“Has she been vomiting at all?” Eir inquired, pressing a weathered hand to Camryn’s forehead.

“Not that I’m aware of,” Loki replied, standing by awkwardly, hating that he had to stay out of the way.

“Well, damn.” Eir frowned. “I had my suspicious that she may have that awful sickness that plagued Asgard in an epidemic so many years ago- the one that you and Thor caught such bad cases of that you had to be sent to the countryside for six moons. It would be a ghastly diagnosis, but an easy one; one that we would know how to fix. But it appears that we’ll have to get creative.”

Loki crossed his arms over his chest and began to worry his finger at his lip, fear growing exponentially as Eir’s assistants returned, one carrying a large basin, the other a stack of washcloths.

“Thank you, girls.” Eir motioned for the basin to be placed on the bedside table and dipped a cloth into the water, wringing it out before passing it onto Loki. “I can tell you’re desperate for something to do, so sponge her face and neck with that, and wet it once again when it becomes warm.” As Eir continued her examination, she caught sight of Camryn’s sleeve, picking up her wrist and inspecting the stained material. “You’ve been coughing up blood?”

“Just the once,” Camryn replied weakly, the expression on her face clearly reading misery.

At that, Loki hurried from wringing out the cloth to Camryn’s bedside, running the damp fabric over her forehead.

“It’s going to be alright, love,” he whispered. “We’re going to find something that will make you feel better.”

After a while longer of toying with the monitors and muttering to herself, Eir waved her hand to make the cradle disappear, then produced a vial of clear liquid from the pocket of her powder blue uniform.

“I’ve no idea what her diagnosis is. She has a sudden intense fever and she’s coughing up blood with no other symptoms to tie those two together, so I can’t treat anything definitively.” Eir looked from Loki to Camryn, who was leaning into Loki’s hand as he ran the cloth over her cheeks. “But give her this and make sure she sleeps, and her fever should subside by the morning.”

“Thank you very much for all of your help.” Loki took the vial and set it aside. “I think I can handle her care for the night.”

“I agree.” Eir gave him a slight smile, patting Camryn’s hand. “I’ll leave you to it, then. I’ll be back midmorning to check on things.”

Once Eir left the room with her assistants, Loki deflated, finally able to drop his barely maintained air of regality. Using seidr to transform his armor into something with more mobility, he settled onto the bed next to Camryn’s only half-lucid form, bringing her to attention with a gentle caress on her heated cheek.

“Here, darling.” He placed his arm around her shoulders and helped her into a sitting position. “This should help you feel better.”

He positioned the vial at her lips, and she drank obediently. Once the contents of the vial had gone down her throat, she coughed once and abruptly stopped herself, eyes watering as she fought the unpleasant experience to follow.

“It’s alright.” Loki rubbed her back, taking a fresh cloth from the table and holding it to her mouth. “Go ahead and cough, love. You’ll feel much better if you get it over with, and perhaps you’ll cough up whatever illness this is.”

She stopped fighting, then, and began to cough once again, so hard Loki feared she was going to get sick. When she was finished, she slumped against his shoulder, shaking like a leaf. Loki discarded the stained fabric and planted a kiss on her forehead, helping her lie down and dragging the blankets up to her chin. Using all of his strength to mask his concern, Loki walked to the other side of the bed to sit right next to her with his feet on the floor, continuing to dab her forehead and cheeks with the cool cloths, the action soon lulling her to sleep.

***

As the night progressed, Camryn’s fever only seemed to crawl higher and higher. Her rest progressively became more fitful: first, she began to murmur something indistinct, then she started to roll back and forth on the bed, seemingly unable to get comfortable, which soon grew into full on thrashing and crying out, blood leaking from her nose. At that, Loki, who had been trying to calm her the entire time, pulled her to his chest and shushed gently, but she was simply unconsolable and half unconscious.

The monitoring spell that Eir had placed in the form of an orange orb on the nightstand, however, was flashing rapidly, and soon she burst into the room with a frantic expression, tying the belt of her dressing gown.

“What’s wrong with her?” she gasped, observing the scene with wide eyes.

“She seems to have gotten worse.” Loki felt Camryn’s hot, frantic breaths on his neck, and again attempted to calm her, to no avail.

“That doesn’t make any sense.” Eir bustled over to the bedside table, wetting a cloth and draping it around Camryn’s neck, but the moment the wet fabric touched her skin, she began to shiver with chills. Loki draped a thick blanket around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head, so concerned with her state that he no longer worried about proper appearances.

“I don’t know what could possibly be wrong. In every case I’ve used that antidote in, no matter how severe, it’s worked perfectly.” Desperately wanting to do something to help, Eir seized a hairbrush from the vanity across the room and combed through Camryn’s wild hair, twisting it into a tight braid before replacing the cloth around her neck. The moment Eir let go of the fabric, however, Camryn let out an ear-splitting scream and began to thrash once again, sobbing all the while.

“Loki!” she cried, gasping for breath. “Loki, make it stop!”

“Love, shh, shh. I’m right here.” Loki tried to swallow the panic in his voice as he gently held her head to his shoulder, rocking back and forth. “I’m right here, shh.”

Her sobs faded out at suddenly as they came as she relaxed in his arms, eyes dropping open but completely unseeing, her mind far away, if there at all.

“Please, Eir,” Loki begged. “I’ll do anything. Please, help me get her well. It’s killing me to see her in such a state.”

“I want her well, too. She’s different, in a very good way. She’s a soul I don’t think you or Asgard should lose.” Eir rose from the side of the bed and gave her dressing gown a definitive shake. “I swear to you, my king: I’m going to tear apart every book we have, research every antidote, herb, and spell in the nine realms, and find something to make her well. I won’t rest until that happens. If you’ll excuse me, I would like to get to it immediately.”

After Eir dashed from the room, Loki pried Camryn from his body and laid her back onto the bed, continuing his seemingly useless attempt to cool her skin. He placed wet cloths behind her neck and across her forehead, but they seemed to become hot almost the moment they touched her skin and had to be changed. Loki kept a damp one in his hand, dabbing it across her cheeks and eventually unbuttoning a few clasps from the front of her nightgown and dotting her chest with the cold water.

Those actions soon began to break his heart, however, for every time a fresh washcloth came in contact with her skin, she moaned or whimpered, grappling at the blankets as if looking for more. After a few hours, it seemed as if every blanket in the palace rested upon her bed, and every washcloth had been wet and placed on her skin, but her shivers only grew more violent, and her fever only climbed dreadfully higher.

#loki fanfic #loki fanfiction #loki laufeyson #loki x ofc #loki x reader

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lokifiction · 6 years

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OC Portrait!

Hello, everyone! I just wanted to drop in and say hi, and thank you so much for your dazzling response to Ice Packs! I was a little unsure at how it was going to go over, so I’m really pleased at how well it’s been received!

As I type, I’m actually on a break from working on the next chapter of Runaway. It’s one of my favorites- completely p a c k e d with whump- so it should be out fairly soon.

But moving on to the reason I made this post- to show you a portrait of the OC on this page, Camryn! Unfortunately, it’s not fanart, which IS ALWAYS WELCOME, BY THE WAY (wink wink hint hint), but I did create it using a great app called LivePortraitMaker. It’s a fantastic tool for writers and lets you do a LOT to create your characters, so I’ll definitely be using it to show you the faces of a lot of featured members in my fanfics! I highly recommend checking the app out if you’re a writer, OC roleplayer, etc. etc.

So, without further ado, here is the portrait, to give you an idea of what my main main character looks like!

(also this post is not sponsored i just really love liveportraitmaker and i’m slightly addicted to it)

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lokifiction · 6 years

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Ice Packs

Loki takes care of his partner after wisdom teeth extraction surgery.

Category: Oneshot

Rating: Teen

Notes: For this oneshot to work out the way I wanted to, I knew I somehow had to take away Loki’s magic, because if he had his magic, nothing in this oneshot would have to occur and I wouldn’t have a plot. However, I didn’t want to take away from that plot for a big explanation as to why he doesn’t have his magic, so just fyi before you read: I imagined this as a scenario where Loki died and was resurrected after Infinity War, but the process to bring him back to life depleted his magic considerably, and it has to slowly return to his full range within a year or so. Hope you enjoy!

Warnings: Language; descriptions of blood, anesthesia, and other things that go along with wisdom teeth surgery.

Masterlist

“Promise me that you’ll film me when I come out of there.”

Loki looked over at me from the driver’s seat and frowned. “Why on Earth would I do that?”

“Because.” I giggled. “People usually act really hilariously when they’re coming off of anesthesia. I’m a bit excited to see how I’ll be.”

Loki pinched the bridge of his nose. Currently, he was driving me into the oral surgeon’s office for my wisdom teeth extraction, and didn’t have the best attitude regarding the situation.

“I really don’t see the necessity of putting yourself through such a superfluous procedure,” he snapped.

“It’s not superfluous,” I insisted. “Humans get it done to prevent pain when the molars grow in and so that our teeth don’t go crooked from the crowding.”

“Yes, but there must be a simpler way.” He tapped his thumbs on the steering wheel. Throughout the whole process, he hadn’t been too keen on me being put under anesthesia and having a “stranger” go to town in my mouth with a scalpel. “Something that doesn’t involve a surgical procedure.”

“Ah, but then it wouldn’t make the dental people as much money,” I teased.

“If I had my full range of magic, I could remove them from your jaw with a snap of my fingers, and you’d never feel a thing.”

“That would be nice, but the thing is that you don’t have full range of your magic right now. And you won’t for a little while yet.” I put my hand on his thigh, clad in a pair of black jeans that hugged him in all the right places. “It’ll be completely fine, I promise. Literally almost everyone has this done at some point or another. It’s really not that big of a deal.”

Loki harrumphed and drew his brows together in stubborn defiance, but placed his hand on top of mine and rubbed my knuckles in silent trust.

In a few short minutes, we pulled into the surgeon’s office. Loki hovered over my shoulder as I signed release forms, and poured over the aftercare instruction pamphlets with religious fervor. I chuckled at his zeal, but my attention was primarily focused on the aquarium in the waiting room.

“Loki, look.” I pointed out a pair of clownfish. “They’re kissing.”

“I can’t look, darling,” he replied. “I have to make sure I understand all of this material.”

“Come on, you’ll have the whole time I’m back there to look at that.” I tucked a stray strand of hair behind my ear, scanning the papers and wondering what I was getting myself into.

“I really don’t see why I can’t be back there with you,” he continued. “My presence is allowed in all of your other Midgardian doctor’s appointments.”

“This is different. It’s a surgical procedure; the environment has to be sterile.”

He pouted. “I’m very clean.”

“That’s not at all what I mean.”

“Still. If this was Asgard, no matter the severity of a procedure, I would be by your side. The healers would work around me as they were trained to do.”

“Yes, but this isn’t Asgard.” I reached out and twirled a strand of his hair round my finger. “It’ll be fine. They’re just teeth.”

Behind us, the door leading back into the dental offices opened, and a nurse called my name.

“I’ll see you in no time,” I assured as I stood, pecking Loki quickly on the lips. “Don’t forget to film me when you come back!”

“Sweetie, are you awake?”

I opened my eyes drowsily and discovered a nurse looking down at me, gauze in her hand. My brain was clouded, and everything was simultaneously hilarious and devastating. Unable to move my lips to procure any sort of response, I nodded dumbly. The nurse smiled lightly and tucked the gauze into my mouth.

“Bite down on that for me, okay?” She reached under my shoulders and helped me to stand. “We’ll get you to recovery and then bring your boyfriend back, okay?”

I gasped, my eyes going wide as we hobbled down the hall. “My boyfriend?” I exclaimed, voice muffled by the gauze.

“Yes, sweetie. Your boyfriend was the one that brought you here.”

“Oh. I’m glad I have one of those,” I babbled as we entered a small lounge and the nurse lowered me down onto a recliner and draped a blanket over me. “Is he handsome?”

“Yes, honey,” the nurse giggled. “He’s very handsome.”

“Well, I’m excited then.” I wiggled in my seat. “Bring him in.”

The nurse clipped a monitor onto my finger and left me alone in the recovery lounge. I sat docile in my drugged state, not really thinking much of anything until Loki came through the doors, face only slightly contorted in concern.

“Loki!” I cried out from my chair. “Holy shit, you’re so pretty!”

He chuckled, visibly relieved, coming to sit on the chair beside mine and stroking my hair lightly. “Hi, love. Are you doing alright?”

I felt tears prick the back of my eyes, and before I knew it, I was sobbing.

“What’s wrong, love?” He cooed, wiping my face and mouth with a tissue as the nurse looked on.

“I- I just- I just-,” I whined through a torrential bout of tears. “I love you so much!”

My comment brought Loki’s gentle chuckles up to a scale of full-blown laughter.

“Stop making fun of me!” I protested. “It’s true!”

“I’m not making fun of you, sweetling.” He brought my hand to his lips. “I love you very much, too.”

“She’s probably just fine to go now,sir,” the nurse interjected. “Do you need any aftercare instructions reviewed?”

“No, thank you. I think I’ve got everything under control.” Loki pulled me to my feet and wrapped his arm around my waist, my head lolling onto his shoulder. “Come on, love. Let’s get you home.”

I cracked my eyes open and found myself cocooned in the bed that Loki and I usually shared, ice packs secured onto my cheeks, my mouth full of bloody saliva, and my lips completely numb. I glanced around the room, slightly confused, only grasping vague memories of what happened over the past three hours. I gingerly pushed myself into a sitting position, and, once my vision cleared from a brief bout of lightheadedness, I opened my mouth to call for Loki, but found I could barely do so due to pain.

Pressing a hand to my puffy cheek, I strained my ears to hear what he could be doing, but, as usual, he was characteristically quiet in a way only inhumans could achieve. I rooted around the bed, which would’ve been more appropriately dubbed as a monstrous mountain of pillows to keep my head elevated, and eventually found my phone under a hefty stack of wet tissues. Wondering what on Earth happened to create the pile. I dialed Loki’s number, trying to put the phone to my ear but finding it too painful and settling for speaker.

“Are you awake, love?”

“Yeah.” My voice was unintentionally very whiny. “I want you.”

“Let me finish something and I’ll be right there.”

After he hung up the call, I collapsed back onto my pillows, groaning at the pain that crept up the back of my jaw. I was still woozy from the anesthesia, and couldn’t manage to find a comfortable position. I was halfway dying of thirst, but couldn’t muster up the energy to reach over and get my cup off the nightstand. I willed Loki to finish whatever he was doing faster and hurry over to me.

“Are you awake now, love?” Loki’s voice preceded him into the room. I turned my head towards him as much as I was able, as even my neck was sore from the procedure. I looked him up and down, still dressed in what he wore to the surgeon’s office, carrying ice packs and a bowl of applesauce.

“How long was I asleep?” I asked, remaining still as he set what he carried aside and began to tidy my pillows and blankets. During the process, he seemed to read my mind and handed me my cup, wiping the water that ran down my chin as my numb lips tried to draw it in. I flushed in embarrassment over how pathetic the scene must have looked.

“Not long. A couple of hours at best.” Loki held up the ice packs. “How’s your pain? Do you want these on?”

I nodded again, holding still as he affixed them to my cheeks. The cold stung, but I knew that the throbbing pain in my gums would become much worse without the ice packs, so I endured it.

“Anesthetic-wise, how are you feeling?” Loki continued to question, being a perfect nurse.

“I don’t really feel drugged anymore.” My mouth was starting to swell and my voice came out as a lisp. “I still feel a bit goofy, though. Like I could laugh or cry at the drop of a hat.”

“Well, I must admit, you were pretty entertaining when you were recovering.” Loki pulled his lips into his signature smug smile, lowering himself down on the edge of the bed.

“What did I do?” The thought of my drugged actions excited me enough to sit forward. “Was it good?”

“Indeed. You were very emotional, and kept going on passionate speeches about how much you loved me. My favorite moment was when you suddenly got very angry and went on a passionate spiel about just how you were going to vanquish everyone who’s ever hurt me.” Loki broke off to chuckle, pulling his phone out of his pocket and fiddling with it. “There was a lot of crying, too. It took me an hour to get you to stop. That’s where all the tissues came from.”

“Oh my god, that’s better than I hoped for.” I nodded towards the device. “Please tell me that means you filmed it.”

“It does indeed. Here’s a clip.”

Loki turned the screen towards me, displaying a scene of me reclining in the car, my eyes closed and my mouth drooping open, wet tear tracks shining on my cheeks.

“What did you say, love?” Loki’s voice said offscreen.

“I said that since Thanos choked you to death, I’m gonna choke him to death with my dick!” Video-me exclaimed, voice muffled by gauze.

“How are you going to do that when you don’t have a dick?” Video-Loki questioned.

“I don’t know, but I have to do it somehow!” I watched myself burst into torrential tears. “They killed you, Loki, I can’t believe they killed you? How could they do that? I’m so mad at them! I’m- I’m gonna rip their guts out because they killed you! You didn’t deserve that! You deserve love and happiness and-”

I started to laugh at myself, but the pain that resulted from the action caused me to break off and hold my cheeks gingerly. Loki paused the video, eyebrows drawing together.

“You can watch the rest of that when you’re feeling better.” He retrieved the applesauce and held it out to me. “Do you want to eat something so you can take your pain medication?”

I once again nodded pitifully, and Loki began to patiently spoon-feed me. I was a bit ashamed of my invalid state and that someone who was literally royalty was having to put applesauce in my mouth and wipe my chin when it slipped past my swollen lips, but deeper down, my heart was warm and fuzzy at how tender and affectionate he was being, taking care of my very unglamorous state without a single grimace of disgust or snide remark.

When the applesauce was gone and I had swallowed my pill, Loki draped an extra blanket over me and helped me turn the TV on.

“If you’re comfortable, I’ll be reading in the living room if you need me.” He kissed my forehead and made to leave the room, but I grabbed his wrist.

“No.” I patted the bed next to me. “Cuddle with me.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want to hurt you.”

��You won’t,” I insisted. “You sit freakishly still. Come on or I’ll start crying again.”

“We wouldn’t want that, would we?” Loki smirked but complied to my request all the same, reclining on top of the covers. As he hit play on the TV show I’d watched a thousand times before and planned to binge during my recovery, I snuggled up to him and intertwined my fingers in his. In the comfort of his presence, I was able to forget my pain and discomfort, and once again slip into a much-needed sleep.

“Loki, I’m so sick of this!” I whined.

It was my third day post-op. I couldn’t get my teeth together, so I hadn’t eaten anything that wasn’t pureed for two days, and when I did eat, I couldn’t get my mouth open, so I ended up with food all over my face. That was definitely an attractive sight to show the god that was supposed to be taking care of me. On top of that, I hadn’t been able to brush my teeth, either, and a horribly bad taste lingered in my mouth. And, to add further insult to injury, my face was swelled up to the point where it looked like I was hiding two softballs in my cheeks. At that point in the recovery process, the swelling was at its peak, as was my pain- a nagging, constant pain that was more annoying than severe, bringing me nearly to tears.

“I know, love. It will get better.” Loki leaned in to kiss me, but I made a protesting sound in the back of my throat and put my hands out to keep him at bay. He pulled back and stared at me with wide eyes.

“Sorry.” I averted my gaze and put my hand over my mouth. “I’m sure my breath is really bad, and I don’t want you to have to smell it.”

“I assure you, love, I’ve gone through greater discomfort than that,” he consoled, but pulled back nonetheless.

“I know. I just don’t like you seeing me like this.” I pointed to my cheeks. “Look at me! I’m so ugly right now.”

“I don’t think your cheeks make you ugly.” He pulled up to his full height, sitting into one hip and observing me from above. “I think they’re cute.”

“Liar.” I tossed a wadded-up napkin at him. “You fell in love with the pretty and perfect version of me. You’re royalty and a god, for fuck’s sake, you shouldn’t have to deal with me like this.”

“My past and its repercussions that you have to deal with are far uglier than this could ever be.” With the gentlest of touches, seeing as I was still very sore, he caressed my puffy cheek. “Besides, I like taking care of you like this. It takes away the feeling of mine that I ruin everything and break whatever I touch.”

“Well, you sure know how to sweet talk,” I pouted.

“They don’t call me Silvertongue for nothing.” Loki retrieved the ice packs once more. “It’s time to get these back on, though.”

I reverted back into my whining state. “I don’t want them! I’m so sick of feeling like my face is being suffocated.”

“Alright.” To my surprise, Loki was compliant, setting the packs aside immediately. “Do you feel well enough to go sit outside? I feel like the fresh air could do you some good right now.”

“Oh.” I sat up a bit straighter. “Yeah, that sounds really nice.”

“Wait here, then. I’ll be back to get you.”

I rubbed my throbbing cheeks as Loki left the room again, using all of my willpower to suppress whines of pain until he returned. He helped me climb out of the bed, which would be more appropriately dubbed as a nest over the past three days, intertwining his fingers in mine and leading me out into the warm early summer air.

“Over here, sweetheart.” He indicated towards the porch swing, which he had layered with cushions and a light blanket. “Mind if I sit first?”

I shrugged my approval and he lowered himself down on one side of the swing, helping me climb on and curl up, resting my head on his thighs. When we were situated, he began to rock the swing gently with his heels, the breeze and distant sound of birds nearly lulling me to sleep.

“You really should put some sort of ice back on.” Loki tapped my nose. “Your face is starting to swell more, and you’re turning all red.”

“Gee, thanks, Lo.” I reached up and thumped his chin playfully, giggling. “But I’m so sick of them. They scratch my face all up and make me feel like I’m suffocating.”

“I got some different ones.” He glanced down at me with a bemused expression. “I think you’ll enjoy these a bit more.”

“Alright. I’ll try anything if it will make me comfortable.”

“Close your eyes, then.” He playfully put his hand over my brow, and I complied with as big of a smile I could muster without pain.

“I love your chipmunk smile, but stop it.” He poked my cheeks. “I need you to relax for this.”

I let one last giggle slip out before I obeyed, and after a brief pause and a curiously cold breeze drifting across my face, he cradled my cheeks in his hands and began to give me the gentlest of massages, though his skin was cold as ice. I cracked an eye open and discovered, as I expected, that he was indigo up to his forearms, raised ridges decorating his skin. He didn’t meet my gaze, instead focusing his slightly red-tinged eyes on his task, tongue poking between his teeth.

“Loki,” I breathed. “You know I love this form and I don’t care who knows or sees it, but you’re usually so reserved about it. I’m proud of you for this, but you do realize that we’re sitting outside, where anyone could see us?”

“I do.” Loki’s expression remained stoic, but the tiniest of flushes betrayed him. “But I don’t care if this is going to make you feel better. Is it making you feel better?”

“Mm.” I closed my eyes again and leaned into his touch. “More than anything has.”

“Well, then, I’ll do it as much as I can. I don’t care who sees me like this.”

I cocked an eyebrow. “Are you sure about that?”

Loki frowned. “Well, I mean, I can always wipe their memories later.”

“It’s okay, sweetheart.” I turned my head and pressed a kiss to his palm. “I understand. Thank you for doing this.”

“No need to thank me, love.” He grinned and tucked a bit of hair behind my ear, chilly fingers brushing across my forehead and giving me goosebumps. “I would do anything for my queen.”

#loki laufeyson #loki fanfic #loki fanfiction #loki oneshot #marvel oneshot #marvel #loki x reader #loki x reader oneshot

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lokifiction · 6 years

Text

Hooray for 4K!

Hello, all! I’m thrilled to announce that within the past week, this blog has hit 4k followers! I’m honestly baffled that my page has grown to this size- I feel that it’s a bit unorthodox and not what would normally be this popular, so I’m incredibly grateful to each and every one of you for giving me a follow! Even though my schedule is insane and I can’t update as much as other writers on tumblr, I’ve only ever been met with kindness and support, and I can’t even express how much I appreciate that. Thank you all for being completely amazing, and making my experience on tumblr so lovely!

Also, I got my wisdom teeth removed yesterday. I’m having some out-of-this-world swelling and bruising and have to have ice packs on constantly, which makes me think of having some nice Jotun Loki hands on my face and is striking some inspiration in my head. Maybe be looking out for a whumpy/fluffy wisdom teeth oneshot soon?

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lokifiction · 6 years

Text

Caught in the Crossfire

The day the Battle of New York occurred was a fateful one, especially for Camryn, who was caught in the crossfire of a Chitauri weapon and Loki’s Tesseract-powered scepter, the blast sending her into a comatose state.

When Thor returns to Midgard to assist with rescue efforts, he finds her, unconscious and close to death, though emitting a strong magical trace. Puzzled by it, the prince brings her to Asgard for medical care- and observation.

Over time, the mystery of what salvation or destruction she will cause because of her magical abnormality becomes harder and harder to solve. As she begins to lose control of herself, she must seek help from the only person that can teach her how to harness her newfound power and the one who happens to hate her the most.

Loki.

Category: Fanfic

Rating: Teen

Notes: Again, I’m so sorry for the giant lapse in posts! I’m really trying to get better about it! I hope you all enjoy this chapter and that it makes up for my horrible posting schedule!

Warnings: None for this chapter.

Tags: (Please let me know if you’d like to be added to the list!) @peterpansexualll @silverhart93 @b1i55

Masterlist

First Chapter

Previous Chapter

Chapter Sixteen

Sleep was proving to be impossible.

For what seemed to be an eternity, I tossed and turned in my enormous bed, staring up at the high ceiling. In the gold, I watched the reflection of the flames in the hearth across the room go from warm, dancing orange shadows to a dim, ominous red glow, seeming to reflect the spiral of my thoughts.

Once Gerd, Inge, and Brenna had left for the night, my mind plunged into a storm of fears over what awaited me at the Council meeting the next day. How would they judge if my powers were safe enough to let me off? Would they conduct a full-scale interrogation, or some invasive physical inspection? Would I have to perform some kind of test? What was the criteria for the Council deeming me safe or a threat? If they deemed me a threat, what would “removing me” involve? The possibilities made bile rise in my throat, and I sunk lower into the bed, pulling the covers up to my nose as if they would protect me.

Would they execute me? If they did, how would they do it? Hanging? Beheading? Poison? Or would they try to torture the power out of me? Or research and do experiments on it? What if they tried to twist me to be under their control?

A part of me wondered if they would just send me back to Earth. Weeks ago, I would’ve rejoiced and prayed for that possibility. Though it was a very unlikely scenario, I realized that going back to Earth would mean never seeing Loki again, and suddenly it became the worst horror of all.

I groaned and pulled the blankets completely over my head. My relationship with Loki was so new, yet I already considered having to leave him a worse horror than being cut open and probed, something that was becoming increasingly more possible as each hour without sleep slipped away, along with my chances of performing well at the meeting.

The mattress below me gradually started to feel like it was drowning me, and my blankets began to feel like tiny insects crawling up and down my body. With a mix between a huff and a groan, I threw them off, my legs working with a mind of their own as I pulled myself out of bed and into the parlor.

All of the fires were burning rather low, giving every room in my chambers an eerie red glow, the effect intensified by the occasional snaps and pops of the wood, the fact that they were the only sound other than my own breathing making them deafening. I sat at the breakfast table with my knees pulled up to my chest, wondering if Gerd or Inge ever returned in the night to tend the fires, wishing one of them would so I would have someone to talk to. Eventually, though, the titanic shadows on the walls began to seem like cutthroats lurking, and I felt as if demonic eyes were on me. My anxiety made me fear my own living quarters, and I had to get out of them.

I tiptoed over to my door and slipped out into the corridors, the environment that would’ve once felt more menacing seeming to comfort me. Braziers flanked every door, with flames that burned higher and brighter, illuminating the space more and reducing the amount of intimidating shadows. Guards were peppered here and there, ready to eradicate any threat. Down the hall, a maid carried a pitcher of water into someone’s chambers. I drifted further down the corridor and heard light chatter behind one door, despite the lateness of the hour, and mighty snores behind another.

Despite the enormous size of the place, the environment gave me the feeling that I was in a homely environment. The thought relaxed me and finally brought a cloud of sleepiness over my head, but I knew that I would become anxious again if I returned to my chambers. Instead, I returned to my door and slid down in front of it, pulling my knees to my chest, staring at the shadows of the flames dancing on the floor and listening to the sounds of other lives besides my own.

“What are you doing out here at this time of night?”

Loki’s question shocked a yelp out of me. I hadn’t even heard his approach. I put a hand to my chest to calm my racing heart and took in the heart-achingly beautiful sight of him in loose sleeping pants and a v-necked tunic that revealed a deliciously considerable portion of his ivory chest, his hair laying curly and relaxed about his shoulders.

“I’m sorry if I frightened you.” He came to stand in front of me, his brows knitting together. “But what are you doing up? Your Council meeting is tomorrow.”

“That’s the exact reason why I can’t sleep. I’m so nervous.” I shivered. “But what are you doing up, then?”

“As a rule, I don’t sleep much. I probably only get one full night of sleep a week..” He held his hand out to me, eyes deep and glimmering in the firelight. “Why don’t we talk about what’s troubling you in my chambers? It’s warmer in there.”

I took his hand and he pulled me to my feet, drawing me close to his body and rubbing up and down my arm to create friction. He must have thought that my nervous shivers were from the cold. Though, I couldn’t say I disliked the treatment I was getting, seeing as warmth seeped from my chest and spread throughout my body, gooseflesh rising where he touched me.

In our awkward position that I never wanted to get out of, we made our way down the hall and into his chambers, with blazing fires and lighted lamps, no ominous shadows to be found. Loki motioned to a pair of armchairs in front of the main hearth.

“Sit and make yourself comfortable,” he offered. “I’ll go pull out some wine.”

As he left the room, I sunk into the plush cushions gladly, barely able to contain my grin as I stared at the spot where our first kiss happened. Loki returned shortly, pulling an end-table between the two chairs, putting a bottle and two glasses on it before coming around my chair and draping a warm, deep blue shawl around my shoulders. As he turned his back to pour the wine, I brought the soft fabric to my nose, expecting to breathe in his scent, but instead found Frigga’s perfume of sandalwood and honeysuckle.

“So,” Loki began, settling down in the chair opposite mine. “The Council meeting tomorrow has you worried.”

“Incredibly.” I drew the shawl tighter around myself, feeling very grateful that he trusted me enough to let me wear something that used to be Frigga’s. “I just keep running through all the scenarios of what could happen in this thing and none of what I’m coming up with is very pleasant.”

“Well, you’re smart to be worried.” Loki’s gaze was fixed on a spot on the floor, eyes wide and tongue dragging across his teeth. Eventually, he raised his glass to his lips and drank generously. “They’re troublesome bastards, the Council.”

“Loki?” I asked timidly. He snapped back to reality, eyes finding mine and regaining their usual alert expression. “What can I expect from tomorrow, as far as the structure of the meeting?”

“They’ll probably question you, I expect.” He ran his thumb across his lips. “I’ll likely get questioned, as well, and perhaps people who know you closely and have encountered you. They might send out an order for Eir to do a physical examination. They could also ask for some sort of demonstration of your abilities.”

“That’s not too menacing, I suppose.” I traced the rim of my glass. “What do you think their decision will be?”

“Honestly, I couldn’t tell you. The Councilors are the only beings that contest me in trickery. All I can say is that I highly doubt they’ll kill you or send you to Midgard. There’s no way they’re going to let an asset like you slip through their fingers. The safety of Asgard be damned. They’re holding this whole thing to try and get you under their control.” Loki bristled for a moment, but relaxed. “My guess is that the two possible outcomes of this meeting are them releasing you back into my care, or taking custody of you for themselves.” “Oh.” I kicked back a generous swig of wine. “And how do you plan to make sure they don’t take over me?”

“The most I can do is know what points to make that will convince them that you’re not a threat to Asgard, know what witnesses to provide that would make the best cases, and be entirely transparent about our training process and what I plan to use your abilities for. The Council may be corrupt, but part of their corruption is that they make sure to never look unjust. If everything goes well tomorrow, I doubt they’ll take custody of you on the spot.” Loki’s faraway gaze snapped to mine, suddenly carrying a burning intensity. “But if, for some reason, they decide to, I won’t let them.”

I shifted uncomfortably under his stare. The rest of his face was stoic as ever, but his eyes shot out a passion so intense that it could only be coming from god. It was the first time in my life I truly understood what “eyes staring into my soul” felt like.

“You shouldn’t sacrifice your place on the throne just for me,” I was eventually able to whisper.

Everything about him remained unchanging.

“But I will, if it’s necessary.” His voice was so soft, but seemed to make the entire palace rumble. Under its power, it was my turn to look away, and search for answers in the fire.

“What are your intentions for my ability?” I asked. “What are you training me for, other than to learn to control it?”

Loki’s presence returned to normal as he topped off his wine.

“My main thought is to make you a warrior. Your ability is hardwired for combat, and you have fantastic natural instincts for it. I figured that once I had you seasoned a bit, I would put you at the head of a special operations squad, and you would be virtually unstoppable. Your omnipotence also makes you an excellent candidate for an advisor and strategist. And with the ability to mind-control, you could be a spy and infiltrator, as well.”

My only response was to drain the rest of my wine.

“If you don’t want to be involved in war, though, there are a number of other things you could do with your ability. Managing the libraries, for example.” He paused to smile a bit, evidently very pleased at that mental image. “But I don’t want to force you into doing anything you don’t want to do. I just think that you will remain the healthiest if you’re regularly exercising your ability and not keeping it trapped inside. Is there anything you’d like to do? What did you do on Midgard?”

My voice was suddenly a dangerously low murmur.

“It doesn’t matter what I was on Midgard. Any evidence that I ever existed there is gone. My life before I came here has been completely erased.” I blinked away unexpected tears. “What I want is to matter. And I want to matter as Camryn, a person of her own right, not an extension of the Tesseract. If the Council takes that away from me, I don’t know what I’ll do.”

“As I said, I won’t let them.” Loki set his wine aside, rising from his chair and helping me do the same. “But for our best chance of success tomorrow, we ought to go to bed. Are you feeling better now?”

I noted the new lightness in my chest brought about by my poetic revelation. “Yes, now that I’ve talked about everything.” I nodded and turned towards the door. “Goodnight. Thank you for this.”

“Where are you going?” he called after me, reaching out and taking my hand. My heart leapt at the contact, and I looked over my shoulder at his slightly bemused expression.

“I thought you said we should go to bed,” I replied, brow furrowing.

He chuckled, as if the answer was blatantly obvious. “I meant my bed.”

“Are you sure?” I squeaked dumbly. Did Loki already like me that much? “Are you not?” When I didn’t refuse, Loki wrapped his arm around my shoulders and led me into his bedroom. I was so love- and dumbstruck that I barely took in the interior of the room, only watching with wide eyes as Loki lowered himself onto the blankets of the mammoth bed and pulled them down for me.

“I thought you said you didn’t sleep,” I murmured, hesitantly sliding down under the covers, afraid his offer would suddenly cease to be and he would force me out.

“I said that I don’t sleep much,” he corrected, waving his hand and extinguishing the lamps. “But with you here, maybe I’ll find it easier and more bearable.”

I thought on the “bearable” comment for half a moment as I laid down, but it was chased from my mind when Loki reached out and drew me to his chest. It wasn’t at all a rough movement, rather one of him draping his arm around my shoulders and using it as an anchor to tug himself closer to me, but it was enough for a quickly suppressed yelp to rise in my throat and for me to stiffen in shock. He must have noticed, because his gentle grip on me slackened.

“I’m sorry,” he murmured. “But despite all that I said, I’m just as nervous as you are. Right now it’s my instinct to want to have you as close to me as possible.”

“No.” I nuzzled myself further into him. “I was just surprised, that’s all. I didn’t expect that from you.”

“Honestly, neither did I. I don’t usually do things like this.” His thumb traced circles across my shoulder. “But this feels right.”

I almost asked about whether or not he ever did something similar with Toril, but swallowed the question and burrowed even further into him. “It does. Thank you for tonight.”

I didn’t expect to find a relaxed state so quickly, but there in the haven of his arms, all of my worries evaporated, leaving me in a little bubble of bliss. Lulled on by the soft movements of his chest and surrounded by his scent that I could only describe as fresh snow, I slipped into sleep and entered a world without worries for the first time since I woke up on Asgard.

I was roused the next morning by Gerd’s startled yelp. The sudden sound made me lose my bearings, and it was not until I saw Loki already completely alert next to me that I remembered what happened last night and realized the cause of her shock. When I pulled myself to a sitting position, allowing Gerd to see that my nightgown and Loki’s tunic were still on our bodies, her blush softened.

“My apologies for the intrusion, Your Majesty,” she panted, pressing a hand to her chest. “Inge and I went to get Camryn ready for the day and discovered that she wasn’t in her room. We thought that we had searched everywhere for her and I came to you in a state of emergency, but I see we neglected to look in the most obvious place.”

“I’m really sorry that I frightened you, Gerd.” My mild embarrassment overcame my reluctance to end my time of closeness with Loki, and I pulled myself up even further.

“It’s perfectly alright. You were already planning on breakfasting here, anyway, so it’s not as if much went askew.” She collected herself into a proper position for a handmaid to assume, her perfect manners completely restored in Loki’s presence. “Are Your Majesty and my lady ready for that now?”

“Yes, Gerd, that would be splendid,” Loki replied, already up and out of the bed, putting on a robe even though he was fully clothed.

“I’ll bring it in promptly, then.” Gerd’s wide brown eyes turned to me. “And Camryn, would you like us to prepare your chambers to get you ready for the Council meeting?”

“Um…” I trailed off, casting a glance in Loki’s direction. At the moment, he was the only thing keeping me calm, and if I left him right before the meeting, I would go mad with anxiety. Luckily for me, he received my silent plea.

“Actually, Gerd, she can get ready in here,” he interjected. “There are still a few things we need to discuss, and we intend on walking down together.”

“I see.” Gerd smiled sweetly. “I’ll go prepare everything, then.”

“Thank you, Gerd.” Loki saw her out, then turned to me with a look of pleasant reluctance. “Well, I suppose I ought to start preparing myself, as well. It won’t help our case to be tardy.”

Assuming that was my dismissal from the bedroom, I started to uncover myself and made to leave, but Loki noticed me and held his hand out with a furrowed brow. “No, you can stay,” he interjected, and an almost imperceptible look of surprise at himself passed across his features before they reshaped to their usual reserved expression. “Unless you’re not comfortable.”

I burrowed deeper into his mattress. It was, as a matter of fact, unusually cozy. “I’m comfortable.”

“Then stay, if you’d like. I think I have I book in the Midgardian Phoenician alphabet on one of my nightstands.” He turned his back to me and removed his superfluous robe. “I believe there might also be one in Japanese Hiragana, if you can read that.”

“I knew a bit of it before the Tesseract took over, but now I think I could read any language in the world.” I turned slightly towards the nightstand to look for a book to browse, but the sight before me made me forget reading completely.

Assuming I was otherwise occupied, Loki’s brow furrowed in a new train of thought, and his gaze fixed on some faraway spot as he took the bottom of his tunic and pulled it off over his head, revealing a body like a marble statue, the contrast of his soft, raven curls splaying out on the snowy white skin of his shoulders causing my heart to flutter. As he rooted around the room for things he needed to get dressed, lithe, taut muscles rippling with every movement, bringing to attention the numerous silvery scars that peppered his form, I realized the significance of the gesture.

Before, he had been unwilling to let Gerd, someone who had known him for at least half his life and someone he trusted enough to not banish from the palace after he took the throne, see him in only his unrevealing nightclothes. Now, in front of me, someone who had tried to kill him before and was a clear match in ability, a perhaps mysterious girl he had known for very little time considering his long life, he was completely undressing, and showing one of his most vulnerable states. And it wasn’t as if the undressing was a seductive matter, either. He was doing it with a complete air of routine and nonchalance, which somehow made it even more intimate. Whether consciously or not, it was an extreme statement that he trusted me immensely, and while our relationship had a rocky and awkward start, it was deep and true and something worth holding onto.

By the time he was clipping on his vambraces, the last step in the elaborate process of donning his armor, I was breathing heavily and tears pricked the back of my eyes. He paused to flash me a bemused and slightly confused look. He opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by the knock that preceded Gerd’s entrance into the bedroom, carting a garment bag.

“Camryn, I’ve brought the things to prepare you for the meeting,” she announced. “And, Your Majesty, Inge is in the parlor with your breakfast. She’s requesting to know if it’s to your satisfaction.”

“Thank you, Gerd.” Loki’s smile was a bit tight. “I’ll go and check.”

I pulled myself out of bed and let Gerd lead me into the wardrobe, watching dejectedly as Loki passed out of the bedroom. I wanted to show how much I trusted him, too.

Once we were alone, Gerd helped me into a simple and conservatively cut gown in a muted taupe fabric, and merely pulled the sides of my hair away from my face with a strip of leather. I imagined the desired effect was to make me look as inconspicuous and cooperative as possible. She was uncharacteristically quiet as she dressed me, and I assumed she was as concerned for the meeting as I was. Now that I was no longer wrapped in the absolute safety of Loki’s arms, my earlier fears were beginning to creep back.

When Gerd deemed me ready, she led me into the parlor, where Inge was laying a spread out on the breakfast table and Loki was pouring tea. When he noticed our entrance, he put down the pot and approached us, taking me in with a half beloved and half dejected expression.

“Did I dress her appropriately?” Gerd inquired.

“I know the aim was to make her as unnoticeable as possible, but it’s simply impossible to not notice Camryn.” Loki’s comment carried the air of a great compliment, and I felt myself flush. “But yes, you came as close as anyone could. Do you feel like eating, Camryn?”

“Not really, but I feel like I should.” I folded myself into the chair Inge pulled out for me, the handmaid patting my shoulder reassuringly as I sat. “I’m starting to get nervous again.”

“To be honest with you, I’d be concerned if you weren’t. I’m a bit anxious, myself.” Loki gestured to my cup. “The tea should help. It’s more of the calming brew.”

I gulped down some of the sweet liquid, willing it to do its work quickly. I briefly eyed the spread in front of me and reached for a fig, picking at the fruit as I uttered my next question.

“This may sound a bit odd, but how should I behave in this meeting?”

Loki made a sound that might’ve been a sigh, the corners of his eyes turning downwards. “I hate to say this, but as quiet, agreeable, and boring as possible. For those moments, your safety will be the most ensured if you act as a creature that exists only to tell the Council what they want to hear, and doesn’t utter any other sound.”

“Oh,” I whispered.

“I hate silencing you.” Loki reached across the table and took his hand in mine. “But I hate even more the idea of what they would do to you if they feel threatened by you. Your presence is extraordinarily powerful, and it would be enough to make those shriveled bureaucrats uncomfortable just by you entering a room they occupy. I don’t want them to take that feeling too far.”

“No, I understand.” I stared at our joined hands, tracing some calluses on his palm with my forefinger. “I want to be safe, too, and stay here with you.”

A sound somewhere between a delighted squeak and a sigh came from behind me, and I turned around to see Gerd’s dreamy expression and Inge lightly elbowing her in the ribs. Gerd blushed again and turned around, returning to her duties of tidying the room for the day. The incident was enough to cheer me in the midst of the dark situation.

“I want you to stay with me, too.” It was Loki’s turn to stare at our hands. “I feel that, together as a pair, we can accomplish great things. We just have to secure our opportunities to do so.”

After our heartfelt declarations, the rest of breakfast passed in silence: Loki picking at the palm of his left hand while I twirled a section of hair round and round my finger. When our food was cleared away, it wasn’t yet time to go to the meeting. Loki and I debated back and forth on whether it would be a better idea to practice with my power and release a bit of it, or not practice in case that it went out of control before I appeared in front of the Council. Eventually, the stress of the decision paired with the nerves I already had bottled up inside caused blue sparks to radiate from my hands, something that hadn’t happened in a long while. We decided to drop the subject, and Loki instead taught me how to play an Asgardian card game quite similar to poker until the palace bells tolled half past eleven.

Loki glanced at the enormous clock in the corner of the room, with four markers instead of twelve, and grimaced. He rose from his seat at the table and a simple brown cloak appeared in his hands. I suddenly felt as if I was going to vomit up what little food I ate, sucking in a deep breath to keep it down as I rose from my own chair and stepped into the offered garment.

“Are we going to a different building?” I asked, tying the strings below my neck as Loki draped his own cloak around his shoulders, his much grander and lined in stunning silver fur.

“Unfortunately not,” Loki replied. “The Council would never stand for being that separated from the goings on of the palace. However, they’ve never been liked by any monarch to sit the throne, so their chambers are on the opposite side of the palace. We’ll have to pass through several courtyards and outdoor walkways.”

“Oh.” With heavy hands, I reached out and took Loki’s offered arm. The more I heard about the Council, the more my trepidation grew.

The moment we passed out of Loki’s chambers, we were flanked by the guards that were before stationed on either side of his door, the clanking of their armor with every step they took providing an eerie soundtrack to our journey. Loki led me out of the royal residential wing of the palace, down a grand, common staircase, and onto a lengthy covered bridge connecting two towers. He was correct in giving me the cloak, for the wind was biting and a half-frozen drizzle dropped from the sky, but I was too anxious to care about the cold. As Loki led me through galleries and courtyards and gardens, all sights I had fawned over during my palace tour, my nerves prevented me from noticing or appreciating any of it, and it was all I could do to hold onto his arm for dear life and try not to faint from fear.

When we finally reached the corridor where the Council chambers were held, their presence appropriately marked by a towering black door, we encountered Gerd and Inge, both flushed and giggling slightly, flanked by Brenna, who was cool as ever.

“We’ve just returned from laying out the banquet spread for their meeting,” Gerd explained before we could ask, breath quickened slightly.

“Yes, with a little twist in their drinks.” Brenna wiggled a vial between her thumb and forefinger. Loki reached out and snatched it, squinting at the label.

“It’s just some of the draught that we give patients when we’re doing minor fixes such as stitches or setting a bone,” she explained. “It’s not enough to have any effect that will make them suspect that anything is amiss. I just put enough in to make them happy, impressionable, and easily swayed in your favor.”

“I would typically be against such a thing, but in this case, I think it might be necessary,” Inge put in.

“It’s the same for me.” Gerd earnestly took both of my hands in hers. “The members of the Council are absolutely vile. I would be devastated if you fell victim to them.”

My breath caught in my throat, and the most articulate answer I could muster was: “Me, too.”

The palace bells tolled again, and Loki gently placed a hand on my shoulder.

“As much as I hate it,” he said. “We’d better get in there.”

“Of course.” Gerd kissed me on both cheeks with tears in her doe’s eyes, Inge embraced me tightly, and Brenna gave me an encouraging pat. As I watched the trio disappear around a corner, my body erupted into trembles, and I tried desperately to calm them as Loki approached the ominous door and knocked twice.

There came sounds of calm scuffling from behind the doors, along with various snatches of indistinct conversation. Loki tutted and rolled his eyes at the noise, tapping his toes impatiently. It was all I could do to stand still without fainting. Once the commotion died down, there came the sound of a heavy latch being pulled aside, and the monstrous doors opened with a powerful groan. The bald, portly servant that granted us entry bowed as we came into the room, pooling black robes covering his clasped hands. Loki took my arm and pulled me tightly to his side, and I relished in the small comfort. I could tell he wanted to do more, but if the Council realized that we were lovers, it certainly wouldn’t help our case.

The Council chambers seemed very much a place where a soul would learn whether it was going to heaven or hell. It was an enormous circular room, each and every step echoing on the floor, which was etched with runes that my newfound power allowed me to read, boasting ominous statements about order and justice and balance. In the exact center of the chamber, the runes on the floor stopped, their presence replaced by a solid black circle- the obvious place for victims to stand. Directly above that spot of accusation, the towering ceiling drew up into an onyx dome, very much giving the impression of a very powerful storm preparing to abound on the Council’s victims.

Loki and I painstakingly made our way to this fateful circle, an invisible weight on my chest growing heavier with every step. I wanted to keep my gaze down at my shoes, but, eerie as the room was, there was something strangely beautiful about it, and I couldn’t resist gawking at it.

The walls were done in a pale grey stone, a contrast to the golden splendor of the rest of the palace. In fact, the chamber seemed very much like a dungeon. Behind us, there was a generous yet short length of mahogany bleachers, likely for public observations of Council meetings. That day, only a scribe occupied the seats, thick brow furrowed as he organized himself to record my fate. With a gulp, I steeled myself to face those that would decide it.

The Councilor’s seats were elevated dozens of feet above us, and they perched over us like patrons in a box at a theatre. The shelf that raised their towering thrones was also done in mahogany, but was painted with gruesome scenes of cruel judgement and justice. I felt my blood run cold. Was this a council chamber or a courtroom of hell?

Atop the shelf sat nine men clothed in rich brown robes, chatting as a collection of more black-robed servants cleared away a meal from before them and refilled their wine goblets. I remembered Brenna’s ploy, and hoped that the drug did the trick.

Though the men all varied in appearance, they all held the same sinister, serpentine expression in their eyes. They clearly noticed our entrance, but seemed to make a deliberate move to ignore us, plucking the last scraps from their plates and continuing their conversations. Loki bristled beside me, nostrils flaring.

“For Valhalla’s sake,” he muttered. “They may be the Council, but I am still their king.”

When the men above us made no further moves to acknowledge our presence, Loki cleared his throat loudly, the sound reverberating across the room until all eyes were on us. The chatter didn’t halt completely, however, until the Councilor in the center rose, his spot raised higher than everyone else’s. With torturously slow steps, he approached the end of their box, thick white beard falling over the edge as he leaned over and pulled his wide lips into a positively wicked grin. When my legs were trembling under his penetrating expression, he straightened and briefly turned to his colleagues before raising his attention to address the absent audience.

“We shall begin.”

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